Flputnam Investment Management Co. Raises Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Key Points

• Flputnam Investment Management boosted its Gilead Sciences stake by 66.5% in the fourth quarter, ending with 105,740 shares valued at about $13.0 million.
• Wall Street sentiment remains positive overall: 25 analysts rate GILD a Buy, four rate it Hold, and the consensus price target is $156.93.
• Gilead recently beat earnings expectations with Q1 EPS of $2.03 and revenue of $6.96 billion, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share.

Flputnam Investment Management Co. increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 66.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 105,740 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 42,243 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.'s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $12,978,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GILD. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Financial Consulate Inc. grew its position in Gilead Sciences by 85.8% in the fourth quarter. Financial Consulate Inc. now owns 236 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. North Star Investment Management Corp. grew its position in Gilead Sciences by 54.8% in the fourth quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 243 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. MTM Investment Management LLC grew its position in Gilead Sciences by 176.0% in the third quarter. MTM Investment Management LLC now owns 276 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the period. Finally, BOCHK Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. TD Cowen upped their price target on Gilead Sciences from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Daiwa Securities Group decreased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $161.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, May 19th. Barclays assumed coverage on Gilead Sciences in a research note on Friday, February 20th. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $155.00 price target on the stock. Wolfe Research upped their price target on Gilead Sciences from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Leerink Partners decreased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $148.00 to $146.00 in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Twenty-five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $156.93.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 0.5%

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $133.73 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.77, a current ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock's fifty day moving average is $135.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.89. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52 week low of $104.46 and a 52 week high of $157.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $166.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.22 and a beta of 0.31.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.91 billion. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 48.19% and a net margin of 30.99%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.81 earnings per share. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2026 guidance at -1.050--0.650 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.79 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.27, for a total value of $396,810.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 173,191 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,907,973.57. This trade represents a 1.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.29, for a total value of $3,676,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 125,779 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,513,524.91. The trade was a 18.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 63,000 shares of company stock worth $8,523,570. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

About Gilead Sciences

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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