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Gilead Sciences (GILD, 2.2%) once again helped inject a little life into stocks Friday with the help of its coronavirus treatment remdesivir.
The major indices appeared poised for losses in early trading amid another record surge in U.S. COVID-19 cases, as well as yesterday's comments from Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin indicating that the White House wants to cap unemployment benefits in the next round of coronavirus stimulus.
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However, Gilead announced that an analysis of previously released clinical trial data revealed an "important finding": namely, a 62% reduction in mortality risk in coronavirus patients compared to the current standard of care.
The news was music to Wall Street's ears; financial stocks including JPMorgan Chase (JPM, 5.5%) and Goldman Sachs (GS, 4.5%) contributed to a 1.4% jump in the Dow Jones Industrial Average to 26,075. The S&P 500 finished 1.1% higher to 3,185, while the small-cap Russell 2000 jumped 1.7% to 1,422.
The Nasdaq Composite gained a more modest 0.6%, but that marked a third straight close at record
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