Essex Savings Bank Lowers Stock Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Essex Savings Bank lessened its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 5.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 4,412 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 231 shares during the quarter. Essex Savings Bank’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $494,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Redwood Financial Network Corp raised its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 2,530 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $234,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,580 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $322,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Peak Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in Gilead Sciences by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,040 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $677,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 3,880 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $435,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, CFO4Life Group LLC grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. CFO4Life Group LLC now owns 4,265 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 2.6%

GILD stock opened at $108.00 on Wednesday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $62.69 and a 12 month high of $119.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.37 and a quick ratio of 1.23. The company has a market cap of $134.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $105.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $102.49.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.77 by $0.04. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 20.76% and a return on equity of 51.93%. The business had revenue of $6.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.32) earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.53%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total transaction of $3,010,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 121,152 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,026,263.04. This represents a 18.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.42, for a total transaction of $1,104,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 620,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $68,489,992.56. The trade was a 1.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 48,500 shares of company stock valued at $5,236,245. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $110.55.

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.