Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Grows Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,763 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,370 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $2,380,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 8.9% in the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,923 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $1,670,000 after purchasing an additional 1,628 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 79.2% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 7,835 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $657,000 after purchasing an additional 3,464 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance grew its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 23,730 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,990,000 after buying an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 3rd quarter worth $126,000. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 79.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 33,162,319 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,780,329,000 after buying an additional 14,680,161 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $107.89 on Wednesday. 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 firm has a market cap of $134.36 billion, a PE ratio of 291.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a 50-day moving average of $104.35 and a 200 day moving average of $94.36. 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 quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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, research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. This is a positive change from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is presently 854.05%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.35, for a total value of $228,375.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 129,873 shares in the company, valued at $11,863,898.55. The trade was a 1.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders sold 302,785 shares of company stock worth $30,503,250 in the last three months. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on Gilead Sciences from $115.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Eleven equities 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $104.52.

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.