WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Key Points

• WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter, now owning 64,955 shares valued at approximately $7.2 million.
• Gilead Sciences reported a quarterly earnings of $2.01 EPS, surpassing analyst estimates, with revenues reaching $7.08 billion for the quarter.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.79 per share, representing an annualized payout of $3.16 and a yield of 2.8%.

WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 6.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,955 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after selling 4,450 shares during the quarter. Gilead Sciences comprises about 2.3% of WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. WealthBridge Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $7,202,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Argentarii LLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Argentarii LLC now owns 3,392 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $380,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.7% during the first quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,040 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $677,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co boosted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.6% during the first quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 3,880 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $435,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 33.3% during the 1st quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. now owns 400 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC now owns 2,840 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.53, for a total transaction of $296,325.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 160,110 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,977,838.30. This trade represents a 1.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.74, for a total transaction of $548,700.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 8,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $978,880.80. This represents a 35.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 82,000 shares of company stock valued at $9,390,030. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Gilead Sciences Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of Gilead Sciences stock traded up $0.47 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $114.09. The stock had a trading volume of 12,580,487 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,195,682. The firm has a market capitalization of $141.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.13. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $81.83 and a 1 year high of $121.83. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $114.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $109.98.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.05. The business 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2025 guidance at 7.950-8.250 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $96.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Truist Financial upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $108.00 to $127.00 in a report on Friday, August 8th. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $136.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 12th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $128.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 19th. Finally, Dbs Bank upgraded Gilead Sciences to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $117.17.

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.