Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Shares Bought by Aviance Capital Partners LLC

Aviance Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 12.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,902 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,286 shares during the period. Aviance Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $1,931,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 118.5% in the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 284 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the period. YANKCOM Partnership acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 325.0% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 340 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $70.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $104.24.

Insider Transactions at Gilead Sciences

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.35, for a total transaction of $228,375.00. Following the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 293,356 shares of company stock worth $29,166,240. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of GILD stock opened at $116.04 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $99.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.50. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a one year low of $62.07 and a one year high of $117.39. The firm has a market cap of $144.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 313.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.21.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.23. Gilead Sciences had a net margin of 1.67% and a return on equity of 31.63%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. This is a positive change from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is currently 854.05%.

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.