Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Shares Bought by Salem Investment Counselors Inc.

Salem Investment Counselors Inc. increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 345.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 490 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 380 shares during the period. Salem Investment Counselors Inc.’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $55,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Everhart Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 55.9% in the 1st quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,042 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 1,450 shares in the last quarter. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 58.5% in the first quarter. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. now owns 2,709 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $304,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. RMR Wealth Builders raised its stake in Gilead Sciences by 20.4% in the first quarter. RMR Wealth Builders now owns 12,490 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,400,000 after buying an additional 2,117 shares in the last quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 117,039 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $13,114,000 after buying an additional 1,366 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Trust acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 1st quarter worth about $215,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on GILD shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an “overweight” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.55.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In other Gilead Sciences news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total value of $3,010,560.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 121,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,026,263.04. This represents a 18.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.82, for a total value of $249,550.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 165,674 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,537,578.68. This represents a 1.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 43,000 shares of company stock valued at $4,630,310. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Gilead Sciences stock opened at $109.98 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.67 and a 200-day simple moving average of $102.26. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $62.69 and a 12 month high of $119.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $136.81 billion, a PE ratio of 297.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.04. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 1.67% and a return on equity of 31.63%. The company had revenue of $6.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.32) EPS. Gilead Sciences’s quarterly revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.87%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.53%.

Gilead Sciences Profile

Gilead Sciences, Inc, a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines in the areas of unmet medical need in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company provides Biktarvy, Genvoya, Descovy, Odefsey, Truvada, Complera/ Eviplera, Stribild, Sunlencs, and Atripla products for the treatment of HIV/AIDS; Veklury, an injection for intravenous use, for the treatment of COVID-19; and Epclusa, Harvoni, Vemlidy, and Viread for the treatment of viral hepatitis.