Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 158.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 352 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $33,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in GILD. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 118.5% in the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 284 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 325.0% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 340 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 142,180 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.22, for a total value of $13,822,739.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 129,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,626,253.06. This represents a 52.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 302,785 shares of company stock worth $30,503,250 over the last ninety days. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of GILD opened at $107.25 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.07 and a 52-week high of $119.96. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $107.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.80. The company has a market capitalization of $133.54 billion, a PE ratio of 289.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.32.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is 854.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on GILD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $80.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.12.

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.