Bailard Inc. Lowers Stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Bailard Inc. reduced its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 6.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 673,507 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 48,838 shares during the quarter. Gilead Sciences accounts for about 1.6% of Bailard Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $54,561,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Gilead Sciences by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 31,811 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,577,000 after purchasing an additional 1,664 shares in the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. increased its stake in Gilead Sciences by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 80,495 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,521,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd increased its stake in Gilead Sciences by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 10,950 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $887,000 after purchasing an additional 1,145 shares in the last quarter. South Dakota Investment Council grew its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. South Dakota Investment Council now owns 222,411 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $18,018,000 after acquiring an additional 7,025 shares during the period. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 53,336 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $4,264,000 after acquiring an additional 1,247 shares during the period. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In other news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.18, for a total value of $146,360.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 100,936 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,386,496.48. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

NASDAQ:GILD traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $67.08. 8,464,533 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,317,518. The company has a quick ratio of 1.27, a current ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.90 and a 1 year high of $87.86. The company has a market cap of $83.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 0.19. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $71.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.39.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.04). Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 20.89% and a return on equity of 38.85%. The firm had revenue of $7.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. Gilead Sciences’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 6.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.59%. This is an increase from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently 68.44%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GILD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $80.00 to $78.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 12th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $81.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $101.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $84.57.

Gilead Sciences Company 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.