Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD Stock: Russell Investments Group Ltd. Boosts Holdings

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 12.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,208,162 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 137,431 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $180,388,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in GILD. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Gilead Sciences in the second quarter valued at $15,393,785,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 61,216,552 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $7,734,099,000 after buying an additional 1,357,967 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 10,539,111 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,468,836,000 after buying an additional 1,018,976 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter worth about $1,316,606,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter worth about $918,387,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Top Gilead Sciences Stories

These are some of the GILD stories that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Gilead’s HIV business is highlighted as a growth driver: Yeztugo sales are gaining momentum, Biktarvy remains a market leader, and the company has an expanding pipeline. Article: Can Gilead Sciences’ HIV Business Fuel Sustainable Long-Term Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Results from the PURPOSE 5 trial showed twice-yearly injectable lenacapavir had better persistence than daily oral HIV-prevention medicines, with no HIV infections reported in the lenacapavir group. The data could strengthen the commercial outlook for Gilead’s prevention portfolio. Article: Gilead Sciences Posts PURPOSE 5 Win As HIV Shot Beats Daily Pills
• Negative Sentiment: Drug-price negotiations in Washington are cited as a near-term risk for Gilead, as lower prices could pressure revenue. The article does not quantify the potential impact. Article: Lilly, Gilead Face Near-Term Drug Pricing Risks As Washington Turns Up Heat

Insider Activity

In other Gilead Sciences news, Director Anthony Welters sold 18,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $148.62, for a total value of $2,675,160.00. Following the sale, the director owned 12,894 shares in the company, valued at $1,916,306.28. This represents a 58.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, 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 company’s 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 10,066 shares in the company, valued at $1,459,771.32. This represents a 33.19% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 242,709 shares of company stock valued at $39,503,427. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Scotiabank upped their target price on Gilead Sciences from $177.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Bank of America increased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $168.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 20th. Leerink Partners cut Gilead Sciences from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $146.00 to $127.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. Twenty-three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.07.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of GILD opened at $167.95 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $208.31 billion, a PE ratio of -53.15 and a beta of 0.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $154.76 and a 200-day moving average of $141.66. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a one year low of $116.88 and a one year high of $176.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.22.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.19 by $0.36. Gilead Sciences had a negative net margin of 12.47% and a negative return on equity of 1.85%. The company had revenue of $8.30 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. Gilead Sciences’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 15th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is -103.80%.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

Gilead Sciences, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops and commercializes medicines for serious diseases. Founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, the company focuses on antiviral therapies, including treatments and preventive medicines for HIV and medicines for viral hepatitis. Its products include Biktarvy for HIV and Epclusa for hepatitis C. Gilead also develops medicines in areas such as oncology and inflammatory diseases. Its portfolio includes Veklury (remdesivir), an antiviral medicine used to treat COVID-19.