Exec Turnover Puts Gilead Sciences (GILD) In The Penalty Box- Leerink

Leerink analyst, Geoffrey Porges, thinks that the surprising new executive appointments at Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: GILD) raise short-term questions but provide long-term reassurance. The analyst maintained an Outperform rating.

Commercial operations leadership reverts to prior (retired) incumbent in nod to investors after disappointing first quarter. In the first appointment, the company appointed former longtime Head of Commercial Operations, Kevin Young, to the position of Chief Operating Officer (COO). In this position Young will report to recently appointed CEO John Milligan; notwithstanding the king’s ransom likely to have been required to recall Young from his reportedly comfortable retirement, this amounts to an acknowledgement that all was not going well with the critical HCV franchise.

Gilead announced the appointment of Martin Silverstein, MD to the position of Executive Vice President of Strategy. This is a position that Gilead has needed to fill for some time, and given Dr. Silverstein's recent responsibilities as Chief Strategy Officer at Anthem (OP), he would seem qualified to bring the payer perspective into Gilead’s executive deliberations – perhaps more so than they have been in the past. Prior to his 20-month tenure at Anthem, Dr. Silverstein spent his professional career at the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), where he had served as Global Leader of their Healthcare Practice. In his new position at Gilead, Dr. Silverstein will oversee Gilead’s corporate development, commercial planning, and alliance management functions.

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