Ieq Capital LLC Reduces Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Ieq Capital LLC lowered its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 19.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 66,660 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 15,591 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $6,157,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in GILD. Avior Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 1.2% in the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,422 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $782,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC raised its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC now owns 3,128 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Concord Asset Management LLC VA raised its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 3.8% in the third quarter. Concord Asset Management LLC VA now owns 3,056 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $256,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Berkshire Bank raised its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 3,398 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TFB Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 1.2% in the third quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 9,397 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $788,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of GILD opened at $109.95 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $95.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $137.03 billion, a PE ratio of 297.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.07 and a 52-week high of $111.03.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.23. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 1.67% and a return on equity of 31.63%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This is a positive change from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 832.43%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 164,211 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.92, for a total transaction of $15,094,275.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 80,801 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,427,227.92. This trade represents a 67.02 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.35, for a total transaction of $228,375.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 129,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,863,898.55. This trade represents a 1.89 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 713,000 shares of company stock worth $67,945,181. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GILD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Citigroup began coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 target price on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.08.

Gilead Sciences Company 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.