Sigma Planning Corp Reduces Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Sigma Planning Corp trimmed its stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 43,468 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,126 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $4,015,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of GILD. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 79.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 33,162,319 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,780,329,000 after buying an additional 14,680,161 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 50.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 34,600,676 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,900,921,000 after buying an additional 11,665,593 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 723.3% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,434,665 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $594,370,000 after buying an additional 5,653,075 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 350.1% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 2,305,270 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $193,274,000 after buying an additional 1,793,145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 8,238.4% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,642,504 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $137,708,000 after buying an additional 1,622,806 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ GILD opened at $109.95 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52 week low of $62.07 and a 52 week high of $111.03. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $95.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $137.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 297.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.18.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.23. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 1.67% and a return on equity of 31.63%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This is an increase from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 832.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.09, for a total transaction of $260,225.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 169,061 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,597,559.49. This trade represents a 1.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 6,788 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.39, for a total transaction of $620,355.32. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $815,198.80. This trade represents a 43.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 713,000 shares of company stock worth $67,945,181. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on GILD shares. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $80.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, 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 research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Eleven research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.08.

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.