Gilead hikes full-year sales outlook, quarterly HIV sales rise 18%
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By Deena BeasleyOct 29 (Reuters) – Gilead Sciences hiked its full-year sales outlook on Thursday and reported third-quarter product sales rose 13%, driven by a double-digit percentage jump for its flagship HIV drug franchise.The company reported quarterly adjusted earnings of $2.55 per share on revenue of $8.3 billion, beating the average analysts’ estimates of $2.19 a share and $7.8 billion in revenue, according to LSEG data.Foster City, California-based Gilead said an 18% increase in HIV sales to $6.2 billion in the quarter was mainly driven by higher prices, higher demand for HIV prevention drugs and favorable inventory dynamics.Sales of HIV drug Biktarvy rose 10% to $4.1 billion, beating analyst expectations of $3.86 billion.Gilead said the US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services completed the process of setting a new “maximum fair price” for Biktarvy to take effect January 1, 2028 for purchases made by the Medicare health program for people age 65 and over. The HIV drug was one of 15 medications selected for the third round of annual price negotiations under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.For 2026, Gilead said it now expects product sales of $31 billion to $31.3 billion, up from a previous estimate of $30.1 billion to $30.4 billion.The drugmaker, however, also increased its estimated full-year adjusted loss per share to between $1.20 and $0.85, from a previous range of $0.65 to $0.30, citing the impact of $12.4 billion in deal-related charges.Third-quarter sales for the company’s liver disease portfolio rose 13% to $927 million.Gilead said cell therapy sales decreased 18% to $355 million, reflecting ongoing competition, while sales of cancer drug Trodelvy rose 42% to $506 million, primarily driven by higher demand.(Reporting By Deena Beasley in Los Angeles; Editing by Bill Berkrot)