Federated Hermes Inc. Sells 688,145 Shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Federated Hermes Inc. trimmed its position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 9.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,441,601 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 688,145 shares during the period. Gilead Sciences accounts for about 1.3% of Federated Hermes Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Federated Hermes Inc. owned about 0.52% of Gilead Sciences worth $595,011,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,789,254,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Gilead Sciences by 723.3% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 6,434,665 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $594,370,000 after purchasing an additional 5,653,075 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth $207,340,000. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 148.4% in the 4th quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 1,817,880 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $167,209,000 after buying an additional 1,085,987 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,659,007 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $3,293,822,000 after buying an additional 1,058,331 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $80.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $105.12.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

NASDAQ GILD opened at $107.25 on Friday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $62.07 and a 1 year high of $119.96. The business’s fifty day moving average is $107.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $95.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $133.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 289.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.32. 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 (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. This is a positive change from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently 854.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 142,180 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.22, for a total transaction of $13,822,739.60. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 129,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,626,253.06. The trade was a 52.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 302,785 shares of company stock valued at $30,503,250. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.