Leo Wealth LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Leo Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 10.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 28,099 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,752 shares during the period. Leo Wealth LLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $2,356,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 114,732,575 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $8,404,161,000 after acquiring an additional 2,910,147 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 84,497,404 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,189,435,000 after acquiring an additional 1,133,281 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 61,246,366 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $4,486,296,000 after acquiring an additional 1,589,240 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 12,414,268 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $851,743,000 after acquiring an additional 93,068 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.6% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 10,412,413 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $714,421,000 after acquiring an additional 268,208 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.83, for a total value of $167,660.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 100,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,398,843.87. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.83, for a total value of $167,660.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 100,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,398,843.87. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.78, for a total transaction of $2,459,529.46. Following the completion of 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 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,847 shares of company stock worth $3,033,340. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of GILD stock traded up $1.44 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $87.73. 2,416,698 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,044,102. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.07 and a 52-week high of $87.86. The stock has a market cap of $109.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 239.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $81.32 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.94.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.40. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 3.79% and a return on equity of 29.34%. The business had revenue of $6.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.64 billion. Equities analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 3.78 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is currently 855.56%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GILD has been the topic of a number of research reports. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday, August 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $105.00 price objective for the company. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $86.85.

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.