2,300 Shares in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Purchased by Chesley Taft & Associates LLC

Chesley Taft & Associates LLC bought a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,300 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $258,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of GILD. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 21.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 40,319,432 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,724,306,000 after purchasing an additional 7,157,113 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Gilead Sciences by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,659,007 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,293,822,000 after buying an additional 1,058,331 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 28,289,917 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,608,337,000 after buying an additional 749,047 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,789,254,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 19.7% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 14,915,095 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,377,707,000 after acquiring an additional 2,458,954 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 1.8%

Shares of Gilead Sciences stock opened at $112.46 on Friday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $62.69 and a 1 year high of $119.96. The company has a market cap of $139.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 303.95, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $105.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.47.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.04. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 1.67% and a return on equity of 31.63%. The business had revenue of $6.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($1.32) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is presently 66.53%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on GILD shares. DZ Bank upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.55.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.52, for a total value of $3,010,560.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 121,152 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,026,263.04. The trade was a 18.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.42, for a total value of $1,104,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 620,268 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $68,489,992.56. This represents a 1.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 60,929 shares of company stock valued at $6,748,980 over the last three months. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.