Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) Shares Sold by Synovus Financial Corp

Synovus Financial Corp trimmed its holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 53.5% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 17,334 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 19,931 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $1,601,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 118.5% in the fourth quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 284 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. YANKCOM Partnership purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Gilead Sciences in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC boosted its holdings in Gilead Sciences by 325.0% in the fourth quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 340 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Gilead Sciences

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 137,676 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.22, for a total transaction of $14,073,240.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 171,223 shares in the company, valued at $17,502,415.06. This represents a 44.57 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 300,285 shares of company stock worth $30,274,875. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on GILD shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and four have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.12.

Gilead Sciences Price Performance

Shares of GILD opened at $105.68 on Wednesday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52 week low of $62.07 and a 52 week high of $119.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The firm has a market cap of $131.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 285.62, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.32. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $108.63 and a 200-day moving average of $97.11.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 1.67% and a return on equity of 31.63%. As a group, analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 EPS for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.79 dividend. This is an increase from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Gilead Sciences’s payout ratio is presently 854.05%.

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.