Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Acquires 10,107 Shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 21.1% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 57,976 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,107 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $6,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Csenge Advisory Group raised its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 319.0% in the 3rd quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 21,394 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $2,375,000 after acquiring an additional 16,288 shares in the last quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3.1% in the third quarter. Railway Pension Investments Ltd now owns 1,415,665 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $157,139,000 after purchasing an additional 42,200 shares during the last quarter. TriaGen Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Gilead Sciences in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,274,000. Sector Gamma AS lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 15.9% during the third quarter. Sector Gamma AS now owns 147,239 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $16,344,000 after purchasing an additional 20,239 shares during the last quarter. Finally, iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Gilead Sciences by 11.6% during the third quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 221,890 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $24,630,000 after purchasing an additional 23,046 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

GILD opened at $146.23 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.31. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $93.37 and a 1 year high of $146.73. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $126.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $120.40. The firm has a market cap of $181.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.67, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.36.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gilead Sciences news, EVP Deborah H. Telman sold 53,646 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $122.85, for a total transaction of $6,590,411.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 43,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,365,596.60. This represents a 55.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Jeffrey Bluestone sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.08, for a total transaction of $625,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 8,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,115,713.60. This trade represents a 35.92% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 257,397 shares of company stock valued at $33,385,512 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on GILD. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $140.00 to $156.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Gilead Sciences from $145.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on Gilead Sciences from $133.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein set a $135.00 target price on Gilead Sciences and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $136.73.

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences, Inc, founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines in areas of high unmet medical need. The company initially built its reputation in antiviral therapies and has since expanded into oncology, cell therapy and inflammatory diseases. Gilead operates a global research and commercial organization, conducting clinical development and selling medicines in markets around the world.

Gilead’s product portfolio is anchored by antiviral therapies for HIV and viral hepatitis.