Gilead Sciences' (GILD) Remdesivir Sparks Market Hope With Trial Success
Gilead's COVID-19 treatment shows efficacy in Phase 3 trial, NIAID study
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Want to add more newsletters?
Delivered daily
Kiplinger Today
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more delivered daily. Smart money moves start here.
Sent five days a week
Kiplinger A Step Ahead
Get practical help to make better financial decisions in your everyday life, from spending to savings on top deals.
Delivered daily
Kiplinger Closing Bell
Get today's biggest financial and investing headlines delivered to your inbox every day the U.S. stock market is open.
Sent twice a week
Kiplinger Adviser Intel
Financial pros across the country share best practices and fresh tactics to preserve and grow your wealth.
Delivered weekly
Kiplinger Tax Tips
Trim your federal and state tax bills with practical tax-planning and tax-cutting strategies.
Sent twice a week
Kiplinger Retirement Tips
Your twice-a-week guide to planning and enjoying a financially secure and richly rewarding retirement
Sent bimonthly.
Kiplinger Adviser Angle
Insights for advisers, wealth managers and other financial professionals.
Sent twice a week
Kiplinger Investing Weekly
Your twice-a-week roundup of promising stocks, funds, companies and industries you should consider, ones you should avoid, and why.
Sent weekly for six weeks
Kiplinger Invest for Retirement
Your step-by-step six-part series on how to invest for retirement, from devising a successful strategy to exactly which investments to choose.
Gilead Sciences (GILD, $78.67) reprised its goal as one of Wall Street's most-watched health care stocks on Wednesday after announcing positive results from trials for its COVID-19 treatment remdesivir.
Gilead announced that its COVID-19 treatment remdesivir met its primary endpoint in a National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) clinical study. It also provided encouraging data from an open-label Phase 3 trial.
The Phase 3 trial focused on severely ill patients and found similar results for those who took five- or 10-day dosing durations, with "more than half of patients in both treatment groups (being) discharged from the hospital by Day 14."
From just $107.88 $24.99 for Kiplinger Personal Finance
Become a smarter, better informed investor. Subscribe from just $107.88 $24.99, plus get up to 4 Special Issues
Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
"The study demonstrates the potential for some patients to be treated with a 5-day regimen, which could significantly expand the number of patients who could be treated with our current supply of remdesivir," Gilead Chief Medical Officer Merdad Parsey said in a release. "This is particularly important in the setting of a pandemic, to help hospitals and healthcare workers treat more patients in urgent need of care."
Later Wednesday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said it was in "sustained and ongoing" discussions with the drugmaker over making its COVID-19 treatment available "as quickly as possible, as appropriate." The New York Times reported that a senior administration official said remdesivir could get FDA authorization for emergency use as soon as today.
GILD stock, which has climbed 21% through April 28, versus an 11% loss for the S&P 500, was up 9% in premarket action after a trading halt for the pending news. The company's stock has climbed in 2020 amid hopes that remdesivir – which Gilead introduced years ago as a general antiviral and was previously tested as an Ebola treatment – would prove effective against the COVID-19 coronavirus.
However, the drug is of interest to more than just GILD shareholders.
Because of its potential, the broader stock market has occasionally ebbed and flowed on any shreds of information about remdesivir's performance in clinical trials. Indeed, stock-market index futures surged higher ahead of Wednesday's open following Gilead's reports.
Remdesivir was touted early as a possible game-changer in the world's battle against COVID-19. "There's only one drug right now that we think may have real efficacy. And that's remdesivir," Bruce Aylward, an international leader of the World Health Organization's joint mission to China, said Feb. 24.
The market jumped April 16 amid a STAT News report claiming success against COVID-19 in a Chicago hospital. However, stocks broadly receded April 23 after the WHO accidentally published draft documents outlining a disappointing Chinese trial – documents that Gilead said included "inappropriate characterizations of the study."
-
Dow Adds 1,206 Points to Top 50,000: Stock Market TodayThe S&P 500 and Nasdaq also had strong finishes to a volatile week, with beaten-down tech stocks outperforming.
-
Ask the Tax Editor: Federal Income Tax DeductionsAsk the Editor In this week's Ask the Editor Q&A, Joy Taylor answers questions on federal income tax deductions
-
States With No-Fault Car Insurance Laws (and How No-Fault Car Insurance Works)A breakdown of the confusing rules around no-fault car insurance in every state where it exists.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into AMD Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayAdvanced Micro Devices stock is soaring thanks to AI, but as a buy-and-hold bet, it's been a market laggard.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into UPS Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayUnited Parcel Service stock has been a massive long-term laggard.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into Lowe's Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayLowe's stock has delivered disappointing returns recently, but it's been a great holding for truly patient investors.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into 3M Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayMMM stock has been a pit of despair for truly long-term shareholders.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into Coca-Cola Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayEven with its reliable dividend growth and generous stock buybacks, Coca-Cola has underperformed the broad market in the long term.
-
If You Put $1,000 into Qualcomm Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You Would Have TodayQualcomm stock has been a big disappointment for truly long-term investors.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into Home Depot Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayHome Depot stock has been a buy-and-hold banger for truly long-term investors.
-
If You'd Put $1,000 Into Bank of America Stock 20 Years Ago, Here's What You'd Have TodayBank of America stock has been a massive buy-and-hold bust.
