Gilead Sciences Q3 Profit Rises, Tops Estimate

(RTTNews) - Tuesday, drug maker and developer Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) reported an increase in its third-quarter earnings that came in above the Street expectations, helped by higher sales of its HIV drugs, Atripla and Truvada.

The Foster City, California-based company reported net income attributable to common stockholders for the third quarter of $673.03 million or $0.72 per share, compared to $495.85 million or $0.52 per share in the year-ago quarter.

Net income for the quarter includes after-tax acquisition-related expenses, restructuring expenses and stock-based compensation expenses.

Excluding items, the company's third quarter non-GAAP net income rose to $730.28 million or $0.78 per share from $525.93 million or $0.55 per share in the same quarter last year.

On average, twenty two analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to earn $0.67 per share for the quarter. Analysts estimates typically exclude special items.

Revenues for the quarter increased to $1.80 billion from $1.37 billion in the prior-year quarter. Twenty seven analysts had a revenue consensus of $1.75 billion for the quarter.

Among the peer group, Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. (BMY | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating) scheduled to report its third quarter financial results on October 22. Analysts currently expect Bristol-Myers Squibb to report earnings of $0.51 per share on revenues of $5.52 billion for its third quarter.

Product sales increased 23% to $1.65 billion from $1.34 billion in the third quarter of 2008, driven primarily by Gilead's antiviral franchise, including the strong growth in sales of Atripla and continued growth in sales of Truvada.

During the quarter, antiviral product sales increased 19% to $1.47 billion from $1.23 billion the last year, driven primarily by the sales volume growth of Atripla and Truvada.

While sales of Atripala surged 42% to $605.3 million from $427.6 million last year, and sales of Truvada rose 13% to $620.6 million from $549.1 million reported in the third quarter of 2008.

Sale of other antiviral product sales, including Hepsera and Emtriva, was $74.7 million for the third quarter of 2009.

Gilead said quarterly sales for Letairis, a pulmonary arterial hypertension treatment, surged 52% to $48.1 million and sales of AmBisome liposome for injection for severe fungal infections increased to $77.06 million from $72.88 million last year.

For the third quarter of 2009, royalty, contract and other revenues, resulting primarily from collaborations with corporate partners, increased to $152.4 million. The company attributed the increase primarily to higher Tamiflu royalties from F. Hoffmann-La Roche, resulting from higher sales related to pandemic planning initiatives worldwide.

The company said it spent $269.9 million on research and development during the quarter, up from $188.1 million in the third quarter of 2008.

For the nine-month period, net income attributable to common stockholders was $1.83 billion or $1.96 per share, up from $1.42 billion or $1.47 per share in the similar period last year.

Non-GAAP net income for the period rose to $2.0 billion or $2.13 per share from $1.51 billion or $1.56 per share in the same quarter prior year.

Revenues for the nine-month period surged to $4.98 billion from $3.91 billion in the comparable period of 2008.

GILD has been trading in the range of $39.37 - $53.28 in the last twelve months. The stock closed Tuesday's trade at $46.12, down $0.69 or 1.47%, on a volume of 8.61 million shares. In after-hours, the stock further lost $1.12 or 2.43%, trading at $45.00.

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