Securian Asset Management Inc. Sells 1,877 Shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD)

Securian Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 66,981 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 1,877 shares during the period. Securian Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Gilead Sciences were worth $6,187,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of Gilead Sciences by 10.2% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,047,609 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $171,672,000 after acquiring an additional 189,622 shares during the period. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Gilead Sciences during the third quarter valued at $245,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Gilead Sciences in the third quarter valued at $102,000. Catalytic Wealth RIA LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences during the third quarter worth about $201,000. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 42.8% during the third quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 677 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Stock Performance

Shares of GILD opened at $114.43 on Wednesday. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 12 month low of $62.07 and a 12 month high of $119.96. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $100.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $92.18. 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 $142.50 billion, a PE ratio of 309.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.21.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 11th. The biopharmaceutical company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities research analysts predict that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Gilead Sciences’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.77. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 854.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on GILD shares. Oppenheimer upped their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $115.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on shares of Gilead Sciences from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Gilead Sciences from $120.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Daiwa America upgraded shares of Gilead Sciences to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and four have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $104.52.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.09, for a total transaction of $260,225.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 169,061 shares in the company, valued at $17,597,559.49. The trade was a 1.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders sold a total of 293,356 shares of company stock worth $29,166,240 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.