Aviva PLC Sells 54,085 Shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Aviva PLC lessened its holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 4.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,094,547 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 54,085 shares during the period. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $101,103,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 35,659,007 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $3,293,822,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058,331 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 28,289,917 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,608,337,000 after buying an additional 749,047 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,789,254,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,002,779 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $739,217,000 after buying an additional 249,804 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 7,047,846 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $651,010,000 after buying an additional 50,434 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Gilead Sciences news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 142,180 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 129,873 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders have sold 302,785 shares of company stock valued at $30,503,250 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Trading Down 4.6 %

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $107.25 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $133.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 289.86, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $62.07 and a 12 month high of $119.96. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.80.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 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, equities research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.95%. This is a boost from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is presently 854.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

GILD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $115.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price 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. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.