Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD Stake Raised by Westpac Banking Corp

Westpac Banking Corp raised its holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 2.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 86,460 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,027 shares during the quarter. Gilead Sciences accounts for about 0.6% of Westpac Banking Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $9,586,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2,837.5% during the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 235 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 7,566.7% during the 2nd quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 230 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Asset Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. Putney Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 53.4% in the 2nd quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC now owns 270 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Colonial Trust Advisors raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 304.3% during the first quarter. Colonial Trust Advisors now owns 283 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 213 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In other Gilead Sciences news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.57, for a total value of $340,710.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 113,193 shares in the company, valued at $12,855,329.01. The trade was a 2.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $119.39, for a total transaction of $1,193,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 581,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,389,826.17. This represents a 1.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 94,646 shares of company stock worth $11,311,286 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on GILD shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Gilead Sciences from $143.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 4th. Daiwa America raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Scotiabank began coverage on Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $129.13.

Gilead Sciences Trading Down 0.1%

NASDAQ GILD opened at $125.02 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1-year low of $86.08 and a 1-year high of $127.68. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $117.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $112.83. The company has a market capitalization of $155.11 billion, a PE ratio of 24.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.32.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.31. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 50.99% and a net margin of 21.86%.The firm had revenue of $7.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.02 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.050-8.250 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is currently 48.99%.

Gilead Sciences 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.