First Western Trust Bank Decreases Stock Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Key Points

• First Western Trust Bank reduced its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 8.0%, now owning 51,610 shares, which accounts for about 0.3% of its investment portfolio.
• Gilead Sciences recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.79 per share, with an annualized yield of 2.6%.
• Equities analysts have generally upgraded Gilead Sciences, with ratings moving from "hold" to "buy", and target prices ranging up to $135.00.

First Western Trust Bank lowered its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 8.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 51,610 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 4,483 shares during the period. Gilead Sciences makes up 0.3% of First Western Trust Bank's portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. First Western Trust Bank's holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $5,783,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bridgewater Associates LP raised its position in Gilead Sciences by 122.7% in the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 460,936 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $42,577,000 after buying an additional 253,994 shares during the last quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV now owns 284,243 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $26,750,000 after purchasing an additional 14,009 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 863 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 54.6% during the 4th quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 37,051 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,422,000 after purchasing an additional 13,086 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mufg Securities Americas Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,699,000. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Gilead Sciences

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.03, for a total value of $277,575.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 162,610 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,054,588.30. This represents a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.74, for a total value of $548,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8,920 shares in the company, valued at $978,880.80. This represents a 35.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 82,000 shares of company stock worth $8,984,175 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Gilead Sciences Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of Gilead Sciences stock traded up $1.06 on Monday, hitting $120.47. 7,947,966 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,157,586. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a one year low of $72.43 and a one year high of $121.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The company has a fifty day moving average of $110.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $107.64. The company has a market capitalization of $149.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.33.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.95 billion. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 50.99% and a net margin of 21.86%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.01 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.95%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on GILD. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Gilead Sciences from $132.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Gilead Sciences in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $125.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group boosted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday. Needham & Company LLC raised Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $133.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Truist Financial raised Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $108.00 to $127.00 in a report on Friday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $114.82.

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.