From 1Q CC: "O'Day stated out of the gate that

From 1Q CC:

"O'Day stated out of the gate that his top priority is to strengthen Gilead's pipeline. While that effort will include developing internal programs, it also means that the company is likely to pick up the tempo on licensing deals and acquisitions.

There weren't any hints, though, that Gilead would make a monster-sized acquisition. O'Day said that bolt-on acquisitions were most likely. He stated that the "vast majority of the opportunities are kind of in early stage or mid-stage." However, he also said that Gilead would look to strengthen its late-stage pipeline.

Gilead is only batting .600 on phase 3 readouts so far this year. While immunology drug filgotinib sailed through three late-stage studies with flying colors, selonsertib missed the mark in two late-stage studies targeting the treatment of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

O'Day specifically noted that he thinks combo treatments will be the way to go in NASH. He also said combo treatments would be important in immuno-oncology. It wouldn't be surprising for Gilead to make additional licensing deals and acquisitions in both areas in the near future.