Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $187.96 Million Stock Position in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 8.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,056,190 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after purchasing an additional 166,474 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $187,956,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund bought a new stake in Gilead Sciences in the fourth quarter valued at $249,000. Core Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Core Wealth Partners LLC now owns 18,323 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,692,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 112.8% during the 4th quarter. TrueMark Investments LLC now owns 21,717 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,006,000 after purchasing an additional 11,513 shares in the last quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. bought a new position in Gilead Sciences during the 4th quarter valued at about $222,000. Finally, Financial Counselors Inc. boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 8,887 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $821,000 after buying an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Gilead Sciences Stock Up 1.7 %

NASDAQ:GILD opened at $111.16 on Friday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1 year low of $62.07 and a 1 year high of $119.96. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $105.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $94.58. The stock has a market cap of $138.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 300.43, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.23. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 31.63% and a net margin of 1.67%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. This is a positive change from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 854.05%.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In related news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 142,180 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.22, for a total transaction of $13,822,739.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 129,873 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,626,253.06. This trade represents a 52.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 302,785 shares of company stock valued at $30,503,250. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $116.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. DZ Bank raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $108.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Gilead Sciences from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price target on shares of Gilead Sciences in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.