DNB Asset Management AS Increases Stock Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Key Points

• DNB Asset Management AS increased its stake in Gilead Sciences by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 254,443 shares worth about $31.2 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains positive, with 24 analysts rating the stock a Buy and consensus price target at $157.04, above the recent trading price of $129.58.
• Gilead reported solid quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.03 and revenue of $6.96 billion, while also announcing a $0.82 quarterly dividend for a 2.5% yield.

DNB Asset Management AS lifted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 3.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 254,443 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after buying an additional 9,326 shares during the quarter. DNB Asset Management AS's holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $31,230,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $68,000. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 39.9% during the 4th quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 21,044 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $2,583,000 after buying an additional 6,004 shares in the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 429.1% during the 4th quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 65,978 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $8,098,000 after buying an additional 53,507 shares in the last quarter. Convergence Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Convergence Investment Partners LLC now owns 43,686 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $5,362,000 after buying an additional 1,217 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 14.9% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 102,074 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $12,529,000 after buying an additional 13,252 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GILD has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $140.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $128.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $123.00 to $122.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 11th. Twenty-four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $157.04.

Insider Transactions at Gilead Sciences

In other news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.44, for a total value of $4,324,320.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 120,288 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,577,278.72. This represents a 18.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.43, for a total transaction of $463,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 167,779 shares in the company, valued at $25,910,110.97. The trade was a 1.76% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 63,000 shares of company stock valued at $9,238,250 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Gilead Sciences stock opened at $129.58 on Friday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $137.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $133.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $160.88 billion, a PE ratio of 17.65 and a beta of 0.31. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1-year low of $100.23 and a 1-year high of $157.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.91 billion. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 30.99% and a return on equity of 48.19%. Gilead Sciences's revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.81 EPS. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2026 guidance at -1.050--0.650 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio is presently 44.69%.

Gilead Sciences Profile

Gilead Sciences, Inc, founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines in areas of high unmet medical need. The company initially built its reputation in antiviral therapies and has since expanded into oncology, cell therapy and inflammatory diseases. Gilead operates a global research and commercial organization, conducting clinical development and selling medicines in markets around the world.

Gilead's product portfolio is anchored by antiviral therapies for HIV and viral hepatitis.

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