Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Shares Bought by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 9.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 848,235 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 74,063 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank owned about 0.07% of Gilead Sciences worth $71,116,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in GILD. Acuta Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the third quarter valued at $1,635,000. CreativeOne Wealth LLC grew its stake in Gilead Sciences by 41.0% during the 3rd quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 32,135 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,694,000 after purchasing an additional 9,352 shares during the last quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund increased its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 118.0% in the third quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 249,370 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $20,907,000 after purchasing an additional 134,993 shares during the period. Kiltearn Partners LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the third quarter worth about $6,087,000. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 134,964 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $11,315,000 after buying an additional 16,996 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $92.41 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $115.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,026.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.17. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52 week low of $62.07 and a 52 week high of $98.90. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $87.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.42. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.44. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 29.00% and a net margin of 0.45%. The company had revenue of $7.55 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.29 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 4.37 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 3,422.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $94.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Gilead Sciences from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 6,788 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.39, for a total value of $620,355.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $815,198.80. This trade represents a 43.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.78, for a total value of $2,459,529.46. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 78,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,545,480.06. The trade was a 27.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 63,735 shares of company stock valued at $5,589,030 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

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.