Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. Raises Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,649 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after buying an additional 345 shares during the quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $2,092,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bellevue Group AG boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 18.2% during the 3rd quarter. Bellevue Group AG now owns 46,027 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,859,000 after purchasing an additional 7,093 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 149.5% during the third quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 81,620 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $6,843,000 after buying an additional 48,910 shares during the last quarter. McAdam LLC increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 16.7% in the 4th quarter. McAdam LLC now owns 25,372 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,344,000 after buying an additional 3,627 shares in the last quarter. IRON Financial LLC purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences in the 3rd quarter worth about $830,000. Finally, Capital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Gilead Sciences by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 387,492 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $35,793,000 after buying an additional 9,791 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $111.99 on Friday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12-month low of $62.07 and a 12-month high of $112.57. 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 market capitalization of $139.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 302.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.18. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $96.98 and a 200 day moving average price of $89.65.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.82%. This is a boost from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is currently 854.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.35, for a total value of $228,375.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 129,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,863,898.55. This represents a 1.89 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold a total of 293,356 shares of company stock worth $29,166,240 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GILD. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $102.08.

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.