Marshall Wace LLP Takes $8.27 Million Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Marshall Wace LLP acquired a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 120,516 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,269,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of GILD. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Institute for Wealth Management LLC. now owns 7,551 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $518,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. First Affirmative Financial Network boosted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3.5% during the first quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 4,342 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $318,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. Rathbones Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 3.7% during the fourth quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 4,185 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $339,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 2.1% in the first quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 7,348 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $538,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 26,526 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,826,000 after acquiring an additional 152 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ GILD opened at $83.61 on Monday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12-month low of $62.07 and a 12-month high of $87.86. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $78.05 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $71.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $104.17 billion, a PE ratio of 232.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.40. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 29.34% and a net margin of 3.79%. The company had revenue of $6.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.64 billion. As a group, analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 3.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th were given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is currently 855.56%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $70.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Raymond James upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $93.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, July 8th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, September 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.06.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Gilead Sciences news, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.78, for a total value of $2,459,529.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 78,127 shares in the company, valued at $6,545,480.06. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.