Gilead Earnings Beats Views By 20 Cents a Share

Gilead Sciences Inc. said Tuesday that fourth-quarter net income was $3.49 billion, or $2.18 a share, compared with $791 million, or 47 cents a share, for the same period a year ago. Revenue for the Foster City, Calif.-based biotechnology company was $7.31 billion against last year's $3.12 billion, thanks mostly to sales of its Hepatitis C drug, Sovaldi. Gilead's adjusted earnings were $2.43 a share, 20 cents ahead of the $2.23 prediction from analysts polled by FactSet. Sales were expected to come in at $6.72 billion.