Korea Investment CORP Makes New Investment in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Korea Investment CORP purchased a new stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 1,003,135 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $126,736,000. Korea Investment CORP owned approximately 0.08% of Gilead Sciences at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,887 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $477,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 7,724 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $948,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Davidson Trust Co. boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 1,879 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 6,619 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $812,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 30.2% during the first quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 328 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Shares of GILD opened at $146.12 on Friday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12-month low of $108.46 and a 12-month high of $157.29. The business’s fifty day moving average is $131.97 and its 200 day moving average is $136.59. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The stock has a market cap of $181.18 billion, a P/E ratio of -54.73 and a beta of 0.32.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($7.25) by $0.50. The business had revenue of $7.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.40 billion. Gilead Sciences had a negative net margin of 10.64% and a negative return on equity of 2.11%. Gilead Sciences’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.01 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend of $0.82 per share. 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%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

GILD has been the subject of several analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 price target on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 15th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Rothschild & Co Redburn reduced their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $170.00 to $167.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Leerink Partners downgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $146.00 to $127.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $158.04.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.31, for a total value of $1,954,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 592,133 shares in the company, valued at $77,160,851.23. This trade represents a 2.47% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.02, for a total value of $725,100.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 10,066 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,459,771.32. The trade was a 33.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 87,000 shares of company stock valued at $11,562,960. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Gilead Sciences

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.