By Doug Busch
Biotech stocks have started to show resilience in an otherwise uneven and at times soft healthcare sector. Gilead Sciences stock is particularly promising from a technical perspective as it is retesting an 11-year cup base breakout. This is a critical moment, as holding this level would reinforce the breakout and suggest the potential for the next leg higher.
The SPDR S&P Biotech ETF is up 9% in 2026 compared with the broader State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF whose 7% decline makes it the worst performing of 11 major S&P sectors. The iShares Biotechnology ETF, with Gilead as its largest holding at almost 8% of assets, has returned less than 1%. Currently this ETF trades 6% off its most recent 52-week high, while the SPDR S&P Biotech ETF is 4% below its annual peak.
Gilead itself has gained 22% over the past year and is up 4% year to date. But it has declined eight of the last 10 weeks, creating a buying opportunity. The stock is quickly approaching its 50-week simple moving average.
The monthly chart illustrates how Gilead has overcome a seven-year downtrend on the ratio chart between 2014-2021 to trade competitively against peers on the iShares Biotechnology ETF:
The stock has been a model of consistency, not recording a single three-month losing streak in more than three years. It is down 8% this month, but notice that both April and March declined on very soft volume. Gilead is coming in to retest an 11-year cup base breakout pivot of $123.47 that began with a bearish shooting star and doji candle in June and July 2015. We know longer term breakouts tend to be more success prone so if this area holds, it would be an excellent development.
The daily chart illustrates Gilead is as oversold as it has been in at least a year, with a Relative Strength Index, or RSI, reading of 27:
I feel this area will hold and start the right side of a double bottom pattern, the same type of base it broke out from in October and January. Enter here and look for the stock to move toward $173 by year end, a 35% gain from current prices. Remain bullish above $118. Gilead Sciences was trading around $128 Tuesday.
A 19% pullback from its most recent 52-week high started with a doji candle on Feb. 9 and a bearish evening star completed on Feb. 18. The stock is nearing potential 200-day simple moving average support, where it found comfort in May and October.
Overall, if Gilead Sciences can continue to hold support and build momentum, it could reinforce a more constructive tone for biotech and signal potential upside from current levels.
Doug Busch is the senior technical analyst at Barron's Investor Circle . His technical view is added to stock picks, including those published exclusively for Investor Circle readers. A glossary of technical terms is updated regularly with new entries.
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April 28, 2026 11:21 ET (15:21 GMT)
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