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

Simplicity Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 9.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,841 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,829 shares during the period. Simplicity Solutions LLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $1,769,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of GILD. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Tompkins Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 223.1% in the third quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 349 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new position in Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. bought a new position in Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Trading Down 0.8 %

NASDAQ GILD opened at $68.07 on Monday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $72.79 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $76.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 1.43. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a one year low of $67.62 and a one year high of $87.86. The company has a market capitalization of $84.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.19.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.76 by ($0.04). Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 38.85% and a net margin of 20.89%. The firm had revenue of $7.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.10 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.67 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were given a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.52%. This is an increase from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is presently 68.44%.

Insider Transactions at Gilead Sciences

In other news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 5,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.78, for a total value of $428,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 101,534 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,709,586.52. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 5,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.78, for a total value of $428,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 101,534 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,709,586.52. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.96, for a total transaction of $145,920.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 96,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,026,339.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,000 shares of company stock valued at $721,180 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $115.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Mizuho reduced their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $101.00 to $90.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $77.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $85.36.

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.