Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec Purchases Shares of 2,083,390 Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec acquired a new stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,083,390 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $263,215,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in GILD. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Gilead Sciences in the second quarter valued at approximately $15,393,785,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,617,152,000. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,316,606,000. Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 2nd quarter valued at $918,387,000. Finally, Boston Partners purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth $517,808,000. 83.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ GILD opened at $148.09 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $133.31 and a 200 day moving average price of $136.58. The stock has a market cap of $183.62 billion, a PE ratio of -55.46 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $108.46 and a 52-week high of $157.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($7.25) by $0.50. The firm 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%. Gilead Sciences’s quarterly revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gilead Sciences news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.64, for a total value of $3,853,920.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 118,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,273,727.76. This trade represents a 19.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.36, for a total value of $415,080.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 165,646 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,918,780.56. This trade represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 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. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GILD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn cut their price target on Gilead Sciences from $170.00 to $167.00 in a research note on Monday, May 11th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $157.00 to $156.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered Gilead Sciences from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Maxim Group upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $165.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Twenty-four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $158.04.

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.