Empowered Funds LLC Has $27.24 Million Stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Key Points

• Empowered Funds increased its Gilead Sciences stake by 41.8% in the first quarter, holding 195,463 shares valued at approximately $27.24 million. Institutional investors collectively own 83.67% of the company.
• Analysts remain generally positive, with 25 Buy ratings and four Holds, producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $158.30.
• Gilead reported first-quarter adjusted EPS of $2.03, beating estimates of $1.91, while revenue rose 4.4% year over year to $6.96 billion. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, yielding about 2.5% annually.

Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 41.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 195,463 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 57,590 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC's holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $27,242,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at $2,617,152,000. Boston Partners acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter valued at about $517,808,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in Gilead Sciences by 3,763.8% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,223,304 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $518,368,000 after acquiring an additional 4,113,999 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in Gilead Sciences by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 23,121,620 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $2,837,948,000 after purchasing an additional 3,046,688 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Gilead Sciences by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 121,097,336 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $14,863,487,000 after purchasing an additional 2,113,692 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn decreased their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $170.00 to $167.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Maxim Group raised Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $165.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group reduced their target price on Gilead Sciences from $161.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 19th. Twenty-five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $158.30.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Shares of GILD opened at $130.52 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $129.56 and a 200-day moving average of $135.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.97 and a quick ratio of 1.77. The company has a market capitalization of $162.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.78 and a beta of 0.32. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $108.46 and a 1 year high of $157.29.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.12. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 48.19% and a net margin of 30.99%.The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.81 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2026 guidance at -1.050--0.650 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 29th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.40, for a total transaction of $376,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 171,646 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,524,408.40. This represents a 1.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.92, for a total value of $371,760.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 124,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,395,077.28. The trade was a 2.36% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 67,000 shares of company stock valued at $8,687,140. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.