SELL: Gilead Sciences (GILD)
From The Complete Investor
Updated from Investment Digest 740, April 10, 2013
Gilead Sciences (GILD took a beating in its recent fourth-quarter and 2016 full-year results. Year-over-year sales were down 14%, net income from continuing operations dropped 34%, and adjusted EPS was down 18.7%. Especially disappointing was the company’s 2017 guidance.
The company expects net product sales of $22.5 billion to $24.5 billion in 2017, a decline of almost 22% from 2016. Its once-solid hepatitis C virus (HCV) franchise is floundering as well, with Gilead expecting HCV 2017 drug sales of only $7.5 billion to $9 billion, down from last year’s $14.8 billion. Add in a possible squeeze from any administration efforts to regulate prices and we don’t see a recovery for the company any time soon.
While a merger or acquisition might be Gilead’s best option for increasing its bottom line, we’re not waiting around for this and are removing the company from our Growth Portfolio.
Stephen Leeb, PhD. And Genia Turanova, The Complete Investor, www.completeinvestor.com, 866-833-2070, March 2017