Another look at the news in week to April 22

Gilead Sciences stock has risen sharply in the last 10 weeks, as a result of analysts upgrading the company. There was one up revision during the last seven days and five earnings per share up revisions during the last thirty days.

Arie Goren, writing on the Seeking Alpha blog, says the recent soar in Gilead's shares makes sense since the stock is considerably undervalued, despite the fact that the company is continuing to do well. According to argusresearch.com, prescription data from Symphony Health indicates that sales of hepatitis C drug Harvoni rose sequentially in the first quarter of 2016. Harvoni and Sovaldi prescriptions have increased for the fifth consecutive week while scripts for competitor Merck have started to fall. This solidifies Gilead's dominant market share in hepatitis C drug sales and leads to believe that hepatitis C sales will be stronger in the first quarter of 2016 than expected. Harvoni sales could also show substantial growth in Europe and especially in Japan. Harvoni was approved in Japan July 2015, and it seems that sales there are still trending higher.

Also, he says, Genvoya has significant advantages over Viread because the lower TAF dosage helps to preserve patients' bone mineral density and reduces renal impairment. These are key safety considerations for patients who may take the drug for many years. According to some analysts, Genvoya has the potential to be a blockbuster product, with peak annual sales of more than $1 billion.