Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Shares Sold by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP cut its stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,607,602 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 61,773 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned approximately 0.93% of Gilead Sciences worth $1,072,172,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of GILD. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 118.5% in the 4th 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 last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC grew its position in 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.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 142,180 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.22, for a total value of $13,822,739.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 129,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,626,253.06. This represents a 52.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders have sold 302,785 shares of company stock valued at $30,540,875 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

GILD opened at $104.49 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $130.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 282.40, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a 50-day moving average of $109.16 and a 200-day moving average of $97.45. 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 1-year low of $62.07 and a 1-year high of $119.96.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given 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 yield of 3.02%. This is a positive change from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently 854.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on GILD. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $85.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. DZ Bank raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $115.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.12.

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.