LPL Financial LLC Acquires 78,839 Shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

LPL Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,137,381 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 78,839 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.09% of Gilead Sciences worth $95,358,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. nVerses Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 101.9% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. increased its stake in Gilead Sciences by 198.3% in the 2nd quarter. CarsonAllaria Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 358 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Cedar Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 51.6% during the 2nd quarter. Cedar Wealth Management LLC now owns 470 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.78, for a total transaction of $2,459,529.46. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 78,127 shares in the company, valued at $6,545,480.06. The trade was a 27.31 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 100,189 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,398,843.87. This trade represents a 1.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 56,947 shares of company stock worth $4,968,674 in the last three months. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

GILD stock opened at $90.19 on Friday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1-year low of $62.07 and a 1-year high of $98.90. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $87.43 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.86. The company has a market capitalization of $112.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,002.11, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.10.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $7.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.01 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 0.45% and a return on equity of 29.00%. The company’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.29 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 4.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is 3,422.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GILD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Maxim Group downgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 8th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $81.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Gilead Sciences in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $110.00 price objective for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.41.

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.