Gilead Raises Product Sales Forecast to $31.3 Billion After 13% Growth
Key Facts
Gilead Sciences reported on October 29, 2026, that third-quarter product sales rose 13% to $8.3 billion from the same period in 2025, and raised its full-year product sales forecast range. The company said quarterly sales increased as its HIV portfolio and Trodelvy grew, while declines in Veklury and cell therapy limited the gain. Adjusted diluted earnings per share were $2.55, compared with analysts’ estimate of $2.17, according to StreetInsider. Product sales also exceeded analysts’ estimate of $7.79 billion. The results place the quarter in the context of year-over-year sales growth and a higher full-year outlook, with continued divergence among product lines.
HIV product sales were $6.2 billion, up 18% year over year. Gilead attributed the performance to a higher average realized price, demand for HIV prevention, and favorable inventory movements. Biktarvy sales rose 10% to $4.1 billion, while Descovy sales surged 49% to $1 billion during the quarter. The portfolio’s increase therefore came from more than one product, with Descovy growing faster than Biktarvy. The figures are consistent with the company’s statement in its second-quarter results that prevention and treatment businesses supported growth in its HIV portfolio.
Trodelvy posted another increase in sales, rising 42% to $506 million on higher demand. In the opposite direction, Veklury sales fell 69% to $86 million as COVID-19-related hospitalizations declined. Cell therapy sales also fell 18% to $355 million amid ongoing competitive pressures, the company said. Sales excluding Veklury were $8.2 billion, up 16% from the year-earlier quarter. This measure highlights that broader sales growth remained stronger when Veklury, which recorded a sharp decline during the period, was excluded.
On earnings, adjusted diluted earnings per share under the company’s non-GAAP measure rose to $2.55 from $2.47 in the third quarter of 2025. But GAAP diluted earnings per share fell to $1.94 from $2.43 in the year-earlier period. The differing trajectories reflect an annual improvement in adjusted results, while the reported accounting figure declined. Before the announcement, analysts had estimated adjusted earnings of $2.17 per share and revenue of $7.79 billion, according to StreetInsider. Adjusted earnings exceeded the per-share estimate, while product sales came in above the published estimate.
Gilead raised its product sales forecast range for fiscal 2026 to $31.0–31.3 billion, from $30.1–30.4 billion in its August 4 update. The company said the cumulative increase in its core business revenue guidance since the start of 2026 was $1.6 billion. At the same time, it widened its expected adjusted diluted loss per share to between $1.20 and $0.85 for the fiscal year, compared with a previous range of between $0.65 and $0.30. The update combines a higher sales outlook with a wider expected adjusted loss, making earnings guidance a complement to the growth picture in the product figures. After the second quarter, the company said growth in its core business supported a higher 2026 revenue outlook, and pointed at the time to potential launches in oncology and HIV in the second half.
In trading, Gilead shares closed at $159.2 on October 28, 2026, according to EL7 data. The available data did not include a higher price during the session, while the closing price sets the share level on the day before the results announcement. The company had previously reported in the second quarter of 2026 that revenue rose 10% to $7.8 billion year over year. The chief executive at the time attributed the increase to HIV products and the treatments Trodelvy and Livdelzi. The company also linked HIV sales growth that quarter to continued strength in treatment and the rapid expansion of its prevention business, saying this supported an increase in its full-year core business revenue outlook.