Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Invests $11.65 Million in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm bought 92,216 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,651,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 20.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,359 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,326,000 after acquiring an additional 2,450 shares during the last quarter. Bison Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth about $215,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 16.8% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,182 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $464,000 after purchasing an additional 602 shares during the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 12.0% during the second quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 118,695 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $13,160,000 after purchasing an additional 12,705 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diversify Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 18.6% during the second quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,296 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 1.9%

Shares of Gilead Sciences stock opened at $146.12 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $181.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -54.73 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.27. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a one year low of $108.46 and a one year high of $157.29. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $131.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $136.59.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($7.25) by $0.50. The company had revenue of $7.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.40 billion. Gilead Sciences had a negative net margin of 10.64% and a negative return on equity of 2.11%. The business’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently -122.85%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.31, for a total transaction of $1,954,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 592,133 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $77,160,851.23. This represents a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.02, for a total transaction of $725,100.00. Following the sale, the director owned 10,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,459,771.32. The trade was a 33.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 87,000 shares of company stock worth $11,562,960. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on GILD shares. Barclays decreased their target price on Gilead Sciences from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Truist Financial cut their price target on Gilead Sciences from $157.00 to $156.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. HSBC raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $133.00 to $155.00 in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $158.04.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

Gilead Sciences, Inc, founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines in areas of high unmet medical need. The company initially built its reputation in antiviral therapies and has since expanded into oncology, cell therapy and inflammatory diseases. Gilead operates a global research and commercial organization, conducting clinical development and selling medicines in markets around the world.

Gilead’s product portfolio is anchored by antiviral therapies for HIV and viral hepatitis.