abrdn plc Boosts Stock Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

abrdn plc increased its stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 89.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,764,107 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,772,887 shares during the quarter. Gilead Sciences accounts for approximately 0.7% of abrdn plc's portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. abrdn plc owned approximately 0.30% of Gilead Sciences worth $304,930,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its position in Gilead Sciences by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 41,882 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock valued at $3,393,000 after purchasing an additional 2,638 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth $74,000. Greenleaf Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 40,491 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,280,000 after buying an additional 2,429 shares during the last quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter worth about $219,000. Finally, Zhang Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 41.1% in the 4th quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 13,404 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,086,000 after buying an additional 3,904 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on GILD shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Mizuho lowered their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $101.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Barclays lowered their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 12th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $81.00 to $75.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $76.00 to $75.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $84.71.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Gilead Sciences news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.18, for a total value of $146,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 100,936 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,386,496.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GILD traded up $0.60 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $66.76. 10,657,002 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,923,117. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12-month low of $65.90 and a 12-month high of $87.86. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The company has a market cap of $83.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.84, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.19. The business's fifty day moving average price is $71.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.56.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.72 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.76 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $7.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.10 billion. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 38.85% and a net margin of 20.89%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 3.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 6.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.61%. This is a positive change from Gilead Sciences's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Gilead Sciences's dividend payout ratio is currently 68.44%.

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.