Every day, the sun rises on Wall Street, and a plethora of professional analysts wake to issue new opinions on stocks. Here at the Fool, we use our "This Just In" column to examine some of these picks-- and the track records of the firms behind them -- so individuals can make better investing decisions.
In addition to following professional banks, anyone can use Motley Fool CAPS to monitor the collective opinions of more than 140,000 members, many of whom demonstrate better investing insight than published analysts do.
After Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ:GILD) spent the past year locked in a four-star ranking, enough top-performing CAPS members joined the bullish crowd recently to upgrade it to five stars. A total of 1,753 members have given their opinion on the biopharmaceutical company, with many offering analysis and commentary explaining the recent optimism.
Shares of Gilead Sciences haven't joined the rally the way Pfizer (NYSE:PFE), Merck (NYSE:MRK), and sanofi-aventis (NYSE:SNY) have since the broader stock-market lows of March. But the company has continued to perform well, so many CAPS members see a good opportunity for gains. The company offers a healthy and broad list of products, and sales of all of them grew in the third quarter. One of its strong points is its competitive position in HIV treatments, which investors expect will continue to be lucrative for Gilead. Its single-pill HIV treatment, Atripla, which is a combination of drugs from Gilead and Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY), brought a 42% increase in third-quarter sales. And while demand is increasing for swine flu vaccines from companies like Novartis (NYSE:NVS), Gilead is raking in Tamiflu royalties from its license with Roche, similar to increased demand for rival drug Relenza from GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK).
Gilead's quarterly results beat expectations, and the company raised its guidance for full-year revenue while lowering its forecast for research and development costs. And after success with its other cocktail HIV drugs, investors see that its four-in-one pill, which is in development, could have a big impact in coming years.
Do you think Gilead Sciences deserves its improved status? Add your thoughts in the comments box below, or head over to CAPS to rate the company and check out all the information and opinions the community offers, absolutely free.
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor service looks for companies with strong management poised to beat the market over the long haul. To see all the stocks that have helped Tom and David Gardner beat the market by 50 points on average, take a free 30-day trial.
In a throwback to the good old days, Fool contributor Dave Mock recently upgraded his computer with the "flying toasters" screensaver. He owns shares of Pfizer, which is an Inside Value pick. Novartis is a Global Gains selection. The Fool has a disclosure policy.
