AlphaQuest LLC Raises Stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 127.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,109 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,709 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $1,765,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Gilead Sciences by 118.5% in the 4th quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 284 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 325.0% in the 4th quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 340 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

GILD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup began coverage on Gilead Sciences in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. DZ Bank raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $70.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $104.24.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 8,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.96, for a total transaction of $781,660.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 132,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,173,021.08. This represents a 6.03 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders sold 293,356 shares of company stock worth $29,166,240 over the last three months. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Gilead Sciences Trading Up 1.2 %

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $117.41 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $146.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 317.32, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.21. 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, Inc. has a one year low of $62.07 and a one year high of $118.42. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $99.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.50.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 854.05%.

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.