Simplify Asset Management Inc. Buys New Holdings in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Simplify Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 96,202 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,066,000. Gilead Sciences comprises about 0.4% of Simplify Asset Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GILD. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences in the second quarter valued at $25,328,000. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 0.8% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 12,414,268 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $851,743,000 after acquiring an additional 93,068 shares in the last quarter. IRON Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences in the third quarter worth approximately $830,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 13.1% during the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 286,116 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $19,630,000 after purchasing an additional 33,162 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 127.6% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 213,901 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $15,668,000 after buying an additional 119,909 shares during the last quarter. 83.67% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Gilead Sciences

In related news, insider Merdad Parsey sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.83, for a total value of $167,660.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 100,189 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,398,843.87. The trade was a 1.96 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 29,357 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.78, for a total value of $2,459,529.46. Following the sale, the insider now owns 78,127 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,545,480.06. The trade was a 27.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 56,947 shares of company stock valued at $4,968,674. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on GILD shares. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Gilead Sciences in a research report on Friday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $110.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $94.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Gilead Sciences in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of Gilead Sciences from $70.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Gilead Sciences presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $93.86.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

GILD traded down $2.67 during trading on Friday, reaching $89.44. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,614,662 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,060,544. The company has a market capitalization of $111.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 1,007.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.17. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $86.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.81. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 52-week low of $62.07 and a 52-week high of $98.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 1.26.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.58 by $0.44. The firm had revenue of $7.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.01 billion. Gilead Sciences had a return on equity of 29.00% and a net margin of 0.45%. Gilead Sciences’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.29 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 4.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio is presently 3,422.22%.

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.