Westpac Banking Corp Invests $9.91 Million in Gilead Sciences, Inc. $GILD

Westpac Banking Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:GILD) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 78,465 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,913,000. Gilead Sciences makes up about 0.6% of Westpac Banking Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,887 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $477,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Gilead Sciences by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 7,724 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $948,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares during the period. Davidson Trust Co. grew its stake in Gilead Sciences by 4.1% during the 1st quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 1,879 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock worth $262,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC lifted its stake in Gilead Sciences by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 6,619 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $812,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Gilead Sciences by 30.2% during the first quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 328 shares of the biopharmaceutical company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.67% of the company’s stock.

Gilead Sciences Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:GILD opened at $146.12 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $181.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -54.73 and a beta of 0.32. Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a 1-year low of $108.46 and a 1-year high of $157.29. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $131.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $136.59.

Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The biopharmaceutical company reported ($6.75) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($7.25) by $0.50. Gilead Sciences had a negative return on equity of 2.11% and a negative net margin of 10.64%.The business had revenue of $7.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.40 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.01 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Gilead Sciences, Inc. will post -0.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Gilead Sciences Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 29th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 15th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 15th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Gilead Sciences’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -122.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. HSBC upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $133.00 to $155.00 in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Gilead Sciences from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their target price on Gilead Sciences from $170.00 to $167.00 in a report on Monday, May 11th. Maxim Group upgraded Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $165.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Gilead Sciences from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 15th. Twenty-four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $158.04.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Andrew D. Dickinson sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.36, for a total value of $415,080.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 165,646 shares in the company, valued at $22,918,780.56. This represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Johanna Mercier sold 28,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.64, for a total transaction of $3,853,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 118,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,273,727.76. This trade represents a 19.15% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 87,000 shares of company stock valued at $11,562,960. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Gilead Sciences Company Profile

Gilead Sciences, Inc, founded in 1987 and headquartered in Foster City, California, is a biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of medicines in areas of high unmet medical need. The company initially built its reputation in antiviral therapies and has since expanded into oncology, cell therapy and inflammatory diseases. Gilead operates a global research and commercial organization, conducting clinical development and selling medicines in markets around the world.

Gilead’s product portfolio is anchored by antiviral therapies for HIV and viral hepatitis.