Geode Capital Management LLC Sells 232,984 Shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management trimmed its Gilead Sciences stake by 0.8% in Q4, selling 232,984 shares but still holding 29.7 million shares valued at about $3.64 billion.
• Several analysts remain upbeat on GILD, with recent target increases from Wolfe Research and Oppenheimer and a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a $156.93 average target price.
• Gilead reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting $2.03 EPS on $6.96 billion in revenue, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share for a 2.5% annualized yield.

Geode Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 0.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,696,002 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 232,984 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 2.39% of Gilead Sciences worth $3,637,369,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,192 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $637,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC now owns 57,539 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $7,062,000 after purchasing an additional 1,416 shares during the last quarter. Expressive Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth $399,000. Syverson Strege & Co lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 3,105 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 436 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TrustBank bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth $135,000. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GILD. Wolfe Research increased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $155.00 to $170.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Leerink Partners dropped their price target on Gilead Sciences from $148.00 to $146.00 in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Maxim Group upgraded Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $165.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $128.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on Gilead Sciences from $123.00 to $122.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Twenty-five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $156.93.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In related news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 15th. The stock was 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 directly owned 125,779 shares in the company, valued at $16,513,524.91. This represents a 18.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Daniel Patrick O'day sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.16, for a total value of $1,291,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 632,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at $81,702,353.72. The trade was a 1.56% 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. Insiders sold 63,000 shares of company stock worth $8,523,570 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of GILD opened at $133.69 on Thursday. 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 $165.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.21 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 1.77 and a current ratio of 1.97. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $135.60 and a 200-day moving average of $133.96.

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

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

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

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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