Fisher Funds Management LTD Makes New Investment in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Fisher Funds Management LTD acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 66,190 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,096,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 118.5% during the 4th quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 284 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 101.9% during the third quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 319 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. YANKCOM Partnership bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on GILD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Gilead Sciences from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Daiwa America upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $110.00 price objective for the company. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $102.08.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:GILD opened at $109.95 on Friday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a one year low of $62.07 and a one year high of $111.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The company has a market cap of $137.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 297.16, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.18. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $95.41 and a 200 day simple moving average of $88.73.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by $0.23. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 31.63% and a net margin of 1.67%. Research analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is 832.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 6,788 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.39, for a total value of $620,355.32. Following the transaction, the director now owns 8,920 shares in the company, valued at $815,198.80. The trade was a 43.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.35, for a total value of $228,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 129,873 shares in the company, valued at $11,863,898.55. This represents a 1.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 713,000 shares of company stock valued at $67,945,181 over the last 90 days. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Gilead Sciences 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.