Robust HIV and Liver Sales Overcome Pricing Headwinds in Q4 (GILD Q4 2025 Earnings Call)
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A resilient core business, fueled by a dominant HIV franchise and rapidly expanding liver portfolio, continues to propel financial outperformance despite significant policy-driven pricing obstacles. The company remains highly focused on accelerating multiple major commercial launches in the upcoming year, capitalizing on its strongest clinical pipeline in decades.
Demand Surges Across Core HIV and Liver Portfolios
Fourth-quarter total product sales, excluding the COVID-19 treatment Vecluri, climbed 7% year-over-year to $7.7 billion. This performance was anchored by the HIV business, which generated a record $5.8 billion in the quarter. Over the full year, the company effectively navigated an estimated $900 million headwind associated with the Medicare Part D redesign. Adjusting for this policy impact, the underlying HIV business grew an impressive 10%, driven primarily by higher demand for Biktarvy, which retained its dominant market position. Additionally, the liver disease segment posted a 17% quarterly revenue jump to $844 million, propelled by rapid adoption of Libdelzi for primary biliary cholangitis.
Transformative Prevention Portfolio Outperforms Expectations
The HIV prevention business delivered an exceptional 53% year-over-year quarterly growth rate, highlighting a powerful dual-product commercial strategy. The recently launched twice-yearly injectable, YES2GO, met its $150 million revenue target for 2025 after securing widespread payer coverage well ahead of schedule. While navigating the logistical complexities of introducing an injectable into a predominantly oral market, management remains incredibly optimistic, issuing full-year 2026 YES2GO revenue guidance of roughly $800 million. Concurrently, Descovy sales remained exceptionally strong, jumping 33% in the fourth quarter as the overall U.S. prevention market expanded.
Cell Therapy Faces Headwinds as Solid Tumor Sales Grow
While the virology business thrived, cell therapy revenues declined 7% over the full year to $1.8 billion, dragged down by intense in-class competition and a surge in clinical trial enrollment across the broader industry. Management cautioned that these structural headwinds will persist, projecting an approximate 10% decline for the cell therapy division in 2026. Conversely, the solid tumor medication Trodelvy posted a steady 8% revenue increase in the fourth quarter. The company expects to officially launch Trodelvy in the highly lucrative first-line metastatic triple-negative breast cancer setting later this year.
2026 Outlook Driven by Multiple Near-Term Product Launches
For the full year 2026, the company expects total base business sales between $29.0 billion and $29.4 billion, reflecting 4% to 5% growth. Non-GAAP diluted earnings are projected to land between $8.45 and $8.85 per share. During the Q&A session, CEO Daniel O'Day underscored the fundamental strength of the clinical pipeline, confirming the company is targeting four new commercial launches this year. Notably, the anticipated second-half launch of Anidocel, a novel CAR-T therapy for multiple myeloma, is expected to eventually capture market leadership due to its rapid manufacturing turnaround and highly differentiated clinical profile.