Morgens Waterfall Vintiadis & Co. Inc. Makes New $3.70 Million Investment in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Morgens Waterfall Vintiadis & Co. Inc. acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 40,000 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,695,000. Gilead Sciences makes up 2.8% of Morgens Waterfall Vintiadis & Co. Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,580 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $322,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Southland Equity Partners LLC grew 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 worth $289,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Berkshire Bank increased its position 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 buying an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. CFO4Life Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. CFO4Life Group LLC now owns 4,265 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, Howe & Rusling Inc. grew its position in Gilead Sciences by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 4,704 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of GILD stock opened at $101.43 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $106.71 and its 200-day moving average is $99.51. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.07 and a 52-week high of $119.96. The stock has a market cap of $126.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 274.14, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.50.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 analysts’ expectations of $6.77 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned ($1.32) EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is presently 66.53%.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 17,929 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.17, for a total value of $2,118,669.93. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 169,061 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,977,938.37. This trade represents a 9.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In the last three months, insiders sold 22,929 shares of company stock valued at $2,644,895. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on GILD. Bank of America raised their target price on Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $80.00 to $120.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.55.

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.