Ascentis Independent Advisors Purchases Shares of 69,520 Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Ascentis Independent Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 69,520 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,689,000. Gilead Sciences comprises 0.7% of Ascentis Independent Advisors’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of GILD. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 71.4% in the fourth quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 204 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Quattro Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 60.0% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. 83.67% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on GILD. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $155.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. Truist Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $157.00 price objective (up from $155.00) on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $170.00 to $167.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $125.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Twenty-five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $158.41.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Shares of GILD stock opened at $131.27 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $162.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.88 and a beta of 0.32. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $129.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $134.64. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a one year low of $107.75 and a one year high of $157.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 1.97 and a quick ratio of 1.77.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.91 billion. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 48.19% and a net margin of 30.99%.Gilead Sciences’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.81 earnings per share. Gilead Sciences has set its FY 2026 guidance at -1.050–0.650 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.8 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 29th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is 44.69%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Gilead Sciences

In other news, CEO Daniel Patrick O’day sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.46, for a total value of $1,971,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 617,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $81,185,357.82. The trade was a 2.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of Gilead Sciences stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.40, for a total value of $376,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 171,646 shares in the company, valued at $21,524,408.40. This represents a 1.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 83,000 shares of company stock valued at $10,824,500. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

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.