Fulton Bank N.A. Increases Stock Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Fulton Bank N.A. lifted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 37.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,896 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,968 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A.’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $2,688,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GILD. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 8.7% in the fourth quarter. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management now owns 2,367 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 73,969 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $9,079,000 after acquiring an additional 1,655 shares during the period. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter worth $212,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 6.4% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 633,185 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $77,219,000 after purchasing an additional 37,949 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC grew its stake in Gilead Sciences by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 122,727 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $14,519,000 after purchasing an additional 1,502 shares during the period. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on GILD. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $160.00 target price on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, February 11th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Tuesday, March 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $180.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Twenty-four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $157.62.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In related news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.44, for a total value of $4,324,320.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 120,288 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,577,278.72. This trade represents a 18.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.23, for a total transaction of $432,690.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 179,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,844,717.93. This represents a 1.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 309,280 shares of company stock worth $44,068,850 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 2.8%

Shares of NASDAQ GILD opened at $137.21 on Monday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a one year low of $93.37 and a one year high of $157.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.40. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $142.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $127.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $170.34 billion, a PE ratio of 20.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 0.36.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 10th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.83 by $0.03. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 49.46% and a net margin of 28.90%.The company had revenue of $7.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.90 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.450-8.850 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is 48.45%.

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.