Ebb & Flow

Gilead (GILD) may be back on an upswing, after a bit of a slide in the early summer, aided last week by an FDA panel's unanimous recommendation for approval of first-in-class HIV treatment Isentress raltegravir from Merck (MRK). GILD is the only other company with a relatively late-stage integrase inhibitor in development. Its elvitegravir (GS 9137) has completed a Phase II trial.

GILD tacked on $1.29 to $37.66 on the week. The stock is off its peak of $42.11 on April 25, but still is up 19% from the beginning of the year...