Gilead Sciences, Inc.

Gilead Sciences, Inc.'s (GILD - Analyst Report) share price continues to head north in response to higher estimates related to the strength of the company's HIV drug franchise.

Company Description

Gilead Sciences, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that develops therapeutics for treating life threatening infectious diseases. The company is listed in a number of indexes, including the S&P 500 and has a market cap of $43 billion.

Gilead was one of the few S&P 500 stocks to finish in the green in 2008, as the company was able to grow its sales and drive earnings in a challenging environment. Much of this stocks recent price strength has been built upon the company's impressive third-quarter results, reported on Oct 16.

Third-Quarter Results

Revenue was up 30% from last year to $1.37 billion. Income came in at $504 million, a sharp increase from last year's $398.3 million. This produced earnings of 52 cents per share, ahead of estimates by 2 cents.

Gilead's earnings have been fairly consistent over the last four quarters, having beat estimates twice, matched once and narrowly missed once.

Gilead said the strong performance was driven by sales of its HIV drugs Truvada and Atripla, with Atripla sales up 77% to $427.6 million, and Truvada sales up 34% to $549.1 million.

Analyst Estimates

Analyst estimates have continued to tick higher over the last few months, with the current-year estimate up 4 cents to $2.04. The next-year estimate is bullish, up to $2.40 per share, a 17.5% earnings growth projection.

The Chart

Shares of GILD have been on a steady trend higher since bottoming out just above $35 in early October. Since then, this stock has risen above $52, and continues to hold in higher ground. Take a look at the chart below.