Which Is a Better Investment, Gilead Sciences, Inc. or Viatris Inc Stock?

By AAII Staff
September 06, 2026
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Sifting through countless of stocks in the Biotechnology industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Gilead Sciences, Inc. or Viatris Inc. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc.

Gilead Sciences, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, discovers, develops, and commercializes medicines in the areas of unmet medical need in the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company provides Biktarvy, Descovy, Genvoya, Odefsey, Sunlenca, Symtuza, and YeztugoFor the treatment of HIV-1 infection in patients. It also provides Epclusa, Livdelzi, and Vemlidy to treat chronic hepatitis C virus, primary biliary cholangitis, and chronic hepatitis B virus; Tecartus, a T-cell therapy for the treatment of adult patients; Trodelvy, an injection for intravenous use; and Yescarta, a suspension for intravenous infusion, is a CAR T-cell therapy for the treatment of adult patients. Further, it provides AmBisome, for the treatment of serious invasive fungal infections; and Veklury for the treatment of COVID-19. Additionally, the company engages in the development of various immunotherapies for patients with cancer and other incurable diseases. The company has collaboration agreements with Shenzhen Pregene Biopharma Co., Ltd.; Abingworth; Arcus Biosciences, Inc.; Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.; Janssen Sciences Ireland Unlimited Company; Japan Tobacco, Inc.; Everest Medicines; Merck & Co, Inc.; Tentarix Biotherapeutics Inc.; and Assembly Biosciences, Inc. It also has research collaboration, option, and license agreement with Merus N.V. for the discovery of novel dual tumor-associated antigens (TAA) targeting trispecific antibodies. The company has a collaboration with Terray Therapeutics, Inc. to discover and develop small molecule therapies; and LEO Pharma to develop, manufacture, and commercialize the small molecule oral STAT6 program. The company was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Foster City, California.

Viatris Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a healthcare company in North America, Europe, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, rest of Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East. It operates in four segments: Developed Markets, Greater China, JANZ, and Emerging Markets. The company offers prescription brand drugs, generic drugs, complex generic drugs, and biosimilars. It also provides drugs in various therapeutic areas covering various noncommunicable and infectious diseases, including cardiovascular, CNS and anesthesia, dermatology, diabetes and metabolism, eye care, gastroenterology, immunology, oncology, and respiratory and allergy, as well as support services, such as diagnostic clinics, educational seminars, and digital tools to help patients better manage their health. In addition, the company offers medicines in the form of oral solid doses, injectables, and complex dosage forms to retail and pharmacy establishments, wholesalers and distributors, payers, insurers and governments, and institutions. It distributes its products through pharmaceutical wholesalers/distributors, pharmaceutical retailers, institutional pharmacies, mail-order and e-commerce pharmacies, and specialty pharmacies under the Lyrica, Lipitor, Celebrex, Viagra, Creon, Influvac, Wixela Inhub, EpiPen Auto-Injector, Fraxiparine, Yupelri, Norvasc, Amitiza, Effexor, Lipacreon, Zoloft, Xalabrands, Dymista, Xanax, and Breyna brands. The company has collaboration agreements with Mapi Pharma Ltd. to develop and commercialize long-acting glatiramer acetate depot products and additional products; Revance Therapeutics, Inc. to develop, manufacture, and commercialize a biosimilar to the branded biologic product, BOTOX; and Theravance Biopharma, Inc. to develop and commercialize revefenacin. Viatris Inc. was founded in 1961 and is headquartered in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.

Latest Biotechnology and Gilead Sciences, Inc., Viatris Inc. Stock News

As of September 4, 2026, Gilead Sciences, Inc. had a $187.2 billion market capitalization, compared to the Biotechnology median of $282.4 million. Gilead Sciences, Inc.’s stock is up 23% in 2026, up 3.6% in the previous five trading days and up 33.9% in the past year.

Currently, Gilead Sciences, Inc. does not have a price-earnings ratio. Gilead Sciences, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $30.5 billion with a -10.6% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 10.2%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $-0.431 per share for the current fiscal year. Gilead Sciences, Inc. currently has a 2.2% dividend yield.

As of September 4, 2026, Viatris Inc. had a $19.4 billion market cap, putting it in the 85th percentile of all stocks. Viatris Inc.’s stock is up 35.6% in 2026, up 3.3% in the previous five trading days and up 63.41% in the past year.

Currently, Viatris Inc. does not have a price-earnings ratio. Viatris Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $14.7 billion with a -2.8% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 4.9%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $2.501 per share for the current fiscal year. Viatris Inc. currently has a 2.8% dividend yield.

How We Compare Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc. Growth Grades

Company Ticker Growth
Gilead Sciences, Inc. GILD C
Viatris Inc. VTRS D

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a Growth Score of 56, which is Average. Viatris Inc. has a Growth Score of 32, which is Weak.

The Growth Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Gilead Sciences, Inc. or Viatris Inc. has a high enough Growth Grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Gilead Sciences, Inc. or Viatris Inc. is the better investment when it comes to sustainable growth.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc.’s Momentum Grades

Company Ticker Momentum
Gilead Sciences, Inc. GILD B
Viatris Inc. VTRS B

Momentum grades help to uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming. Momentum is based on the price change of a stock over a specified period relative to all other stocks.

Typically, AAII looks at the weighted relative strength over the trailing four quarters. The weighted four-quarter relative strength rank is the relative price change for each of the past four quarters. The most recent quarterly price change is given a weight of 40% and each of the three previous quarters are given a weighting of 20%.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a Momentum Score of 72, which is Strong. Viatris Inc. has a Momentum Score of 77, which is Strong.

The Momentum Grade Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Momentum Grade breakdown above, both Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc. have a grade of B. For those who focus solely on a company’s momentum, further research will need to be conducted into both companies to see if they fit your individual needs as an investor.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc.’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company Ticker Earnings Estimate
Gilead Sciences, Inc. GILD B
Viatris Inc. VTRS B

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Gilead Sciences, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 75, which is Positive. Viatris Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 73, which is Positive.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, both Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc. have a grade of B. For those focusing solely on a company’s estimate revisions, other financial metrics will need to be evaluated to determine whether Gilead Sciences, Inc. or Viatris Inc. is a better fit.

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Other Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc. Grades

In addition to Momentum, Estimate Revisions and Growth, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Quality.

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Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the ranking of key metrics. Specifically, the quality grade is the percentile rank of the composite of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and F-Score.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Gilead Sciences, Inc. or Viatris Inc. Stock?

Overall, Gilead Sciences, Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 56, Momentum Score of 72 and Estimate Revisions Score of 75.

Viatris Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 32, Momentum Score of 77 and Estimate Revisions Score of 73.

Comparing Gilead Sciences, Inc. and Viatris Inc.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

Learn More About A+ Investor

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.



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