Benjamin Edwards Inc. Reduces Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. decreased its holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 51.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 176,169 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 189,651 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.'s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $16,273,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of GILD. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 40,319,432 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,724,306,000 after buying an additional 7,157,113 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Gilead Sciences by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,659,007 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,293,822,000 after buying an additional 1,058,331 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in 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 valued at $2,608,337,000 after purchasing an additional 749,047 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth about $1,789,254,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased 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 purchasing an additional 2,458,954 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gilead Sciences Trading Down 0.7 %

Gilead Sciences stock traded down $0.74 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $98.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 12,994,561 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,571,406. The stock has a market cap of $122.23 billion, a PE ratio of 265.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.26. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a one year low of $62.07 and a one year high of $119.96. The company has a 50 day moving average of $107.95 and a 200-day moving average of $99.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.50.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.04. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 31.63% and a net margin of 1.67%. The company had revenue of $6.67 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.77 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted ($1.32) earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. Gilead Sciences's payout ratio is presently 66.53%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 137,676 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.22, for a total transaction of $14,073,240.72. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 171,223 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,502,415.06. This represents a 44.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 160,605 shares of company stock valued at $16,718,136. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on GILD. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. DZ Bank raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $108.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Nine 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $110.55.

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.