Sterling Capital Management LLC Buys 42,040 Shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD - Free Report) by 747.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 47,664 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock after purchasing an additional 42,040 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC's holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $4,403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 21.6% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 40,319,432 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $3,724,306,000 after buying an additional 7,157,113 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake 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 purchasing an additional 1,058,331 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 749,047 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter worth $1,789,254,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 12.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,277,915 shares of the biopharmaceutical company's stock worth $1,041,741,000 after purchasing an additional 1,292,399 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company's stock.

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Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 142,180 shares of Gilead Sciences 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 129,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,626,253.06. The trade was a 52.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 300,285 shares of company stock valued at $30,274,875. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ GILD traded down $0.80 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $104.88. 7,115,807 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,494,393. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $108.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $97.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $130.59 billion, a PE ratio of 283.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.07 and a 52-week high of $119.96.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.79 per share. This is an increase from Gilead Sciences's previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. Gilead Sciences's payout ratio is presently 854.05%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GILD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded Gilead Sciences from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $80.00 to $120.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America increased their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $105.12.

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.