Ruffer LLP Makes New $6.50 Million Investment in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Ruffer LLP acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 70,399 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,503,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.4% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 60,171,691 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $5,044,795,000 after purchasing an additional 841,776 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 50.9% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 34,600,676 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,900,921,000 after purchasing an additional 11,665,593 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 33,162,319 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,780,329,000 after acquiring an additional 14,680,161 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 27,540,870 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,302,119,000 after acquiring an additional 574,421 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,002,779 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $739,217,000 after acquiring an additional 249,804 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Gilead Sciences stock opened at $117.41 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $146.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 317.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.21. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $99.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.50. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.07 and a 52-week high of $118.42. 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 announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS 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 issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is 854.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.09, for a total transaction of $260,225.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 169,061 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,597,559.49. The trade was a 1.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 293,356 shares of company stock worth $29,166,240. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Eleven research 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $104.24.

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.