HighTower Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

HighTower Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,793,699 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,746 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $165,684,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 1.2% during the third quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,422 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $782,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Concord Asset Management LLC VA boosted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Berkshire Bank boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 3,398 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 11,354 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,049,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Trading Down 2.4 %

Shares of GILD stock opened at $114.43 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $142.50 billion, a PE ratio of 309.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.21. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1-year low of $62.07 and a 1-year high of $119.96. The business has a 50-day moving average of $100.56 and a 200 day moving average of $92.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.23. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 31.63% and a net margin of 1.67%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.76%. This is a boost from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently 854.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on GILD shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $80.00 to $120.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $70.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Bank of America increased their target price on Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $104.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.35, for a total transaction of $228,375.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 129,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,863,898.55. The trade was a 1.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders sold 293,356 shares of company stock valued at $29,166,240 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

About Gilead Sciences

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.