Nuveen LLC Invests $620.42 Million in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has acquired 5,536,944 shares of Gilead Sciences, valued at approximately $620 million, increasing their ownership stake to about 0.44% of the company.
• Gilead Sciences reported quarterly earnings of $2.01 EPS, exceeding expectations, with revenues of $7.08 billion, demonstrating a year-over-year growth of 1.4%.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.79 per share, set to be paid on September 29th, with a current dividend yield of 2.6% and a payout ratio of 62.95%.

Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 5,536,944 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock, valued at approximately $620,415,000. Nuveen LLC owned 0.44% of Gilead Sciences at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Redwood Financial Network Corp lifted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Redwood Financial Network Corp now owns 2,530 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $234,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Argentarii LLC raised its position in shares of 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 holdings in Gilead Sciences by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,040 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $677,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Perkins Coie Trust Co increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 3,880 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $435,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. increased its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 33.3% in the 1st quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. now owns 400 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GILD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Oppenheimer dropped their target price 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 started coverage on Gilead Sciences in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. They set an "overweight" rating and a $125.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial raised shares of Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $108.00 to $127.00 in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted 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. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday. Seven 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 MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $114.82.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GILD traded down $0.45 on Tuesday, hitting $120.02. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,084,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,236,199. The stock's 50-day moving average is $111.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $107.83. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $72.67 and a 12 month high of $121.83. The company has a market capitalization of $148.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.33. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.05. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 50.99% and a net margin of 21.86%. The firm had revenue of $7.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.95 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.01 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Daniel Patrick O'day sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.94, for a total transaction of $1,139,400.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 605,725 shares in the company, valued at $69,016,306.50. The trade was a 1.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $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. Insiders have sold 82,000 shares of company stock worth $8,984,175 over the last three months. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Gilead Sciences

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.