ARGA Investment Management LP Has $1.97 Million Stock Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

ARGA Investment Management LP cut its stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 90.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,619 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 163,251 shares during the quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP's holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $1,974,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 20.6% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 14,359 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $1,326,000 after purchasing an additional 2,450 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $339,000. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 393,801 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $36,375,000 after acquiring an additional 3,626 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 9,205 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $850,000 after acquiring an additional 1,370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Personal CFO Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth approximately $207,000. 83.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In other news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.17, for a total transaction of $330,510.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 120,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,238,908.56. This trade represents a 2.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.17, for a total value of $275,425.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 165,110 shares in the company, valued at $18,190,168.70. The trade was a 1.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 58,500 shares of company stock valued at $6,340,745 over the last ninety days. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $132.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Gilead Sciences in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, 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 note on Thursday, March 27th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $111.38.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

GILD stock traded up $1.54 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $112.60. 1,233,180 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,674,172. The company has a current ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 1.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $140.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.71, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.29. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $107.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.29. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $66.34 and a 12 month high of $119.96.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.81 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.77 by $0.04. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 51.93% and a net margin of 20.76%. The company had revenue of $6.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.77 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned ($1.32) earnings per share. Gilead Sciences's revenue was down .3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 27th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were given a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. Gilead Sciences's payout ratio is currently 66.53%.

Gilead Sciences 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.