Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund Sells 9,200 Shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Key Points

• Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund has reduced its stake in Gilead Sciences, now holding 278,163 shares valued at approximately $31.17 million after a 3.2% decrease during the first quarter.
• Many institutions increased their positions in Gilead, including Vanguard Group and Royal Bank of Canada, indicating strong institutional interest with 83.67% of the stock owned by such investors.
• Gilead reported quarterly earnings of $2.01 per share, surpassing estimates, with anticipated earnings of 7.95 per share for the current fiscal year.

Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund cut its stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 3.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 278,163 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 9,200 shares during the period. Fjarde AP Fonden Fourth Swedish National Pension Fund's holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $31,168,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 1st quarter worth $620,415,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 13,891.1% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,550,298 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $285,761,000 after buying an additional 2,532,070 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 19.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 14,915,095 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,377,707,000 after buying an additional 2,458,954 shares in the last quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 422.6% during the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 2,523,036 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $282,706,000 after buying an additional 2,040,261 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 30.1% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,678,751 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $801,655,000 after buying an additional 2,005,863 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Gilead Sciences

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 162,610 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,054,588.30. This trade represents a 1.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.03, for a total value of $333,090.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 117,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,009,163.04. This represents a 2.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 79,500 shares of company stock valued at $8,734,625. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of Gilead Sciences stock traded down $0.65 on Friday, hitting $118.37. The company had a trading volume of 8,859,738 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,401,320. The stock has a market capitalization of $146.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.33. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $72.89 and a 1 year high of $121.83. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $111.88 and a 200-day moving average of $108.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.32.

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

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on GILD. Needham & Company LLC raised Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $133.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, July 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald began coverage on Gilead Sciences in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $125.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Gilead Sciences from $130.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on Gilead Sciences from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Gilead Sciences from $132.00 to $125.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Gilead Sciences presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $114.82.

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.