Eli Lilly grew earnings 168% and raised its full-year guidance. What's up with the stock?
Eli Lilly grew profits by 168% and raised its full-year forecast / Photo: Tada Images / Shutterstock
US pharma giant Eli Lilly on Thursday, April 30, reported quarterly earnings and revenue for the first quarter that far exceeded analysts' forecasts. The company also raised its full-year sales forecast by $2 billion amid a new surge in demand for its weight-loss drug Zepbound and diabetes treatment Mounjaro, CNBC reported.
What the company said in the report
- Eli Lilly's adjusted earnings per share for the first quarter were $8.55 versus expectations of $6.66, CNBC writes. Net income for the same period grew 168% year-on-year to $7.4 billion.
- Total revenue for the first quarter rose 56% year-over-year to $19.8 billion, with revenue in the U.S. up 43% from the same period last year to $12.1 billion.
Separately, sales of Eli Lilly's diabetes drug Mounjaro increased 125% year-over-year in the first quarter, generating $8.66 billion in revenue for the company (including $4.2 billion in the U.S.). That result exceeded analysts' expectations, who had forecast Mounjaro sales of $7.26 billion for the quarter, according to StreetAccount data cited by CNBC.
Eli Lilly's revenue from sales of Zepbound, which entered the U.S. market about three years ago, rose 80% year-over-year in the first quarter to $4.16 billion. Analysts had expected the company's revenue from sales of Zepbound in the U.S. to be $4.04 billion.
- Eli Lilly expects total revenue of $82 billion-$85 billion in 2026, versus the previous guidance of $80 billion-$83 billion. The company also forecasts full-year adjusted earnings of $35.5-$37 per share, compared to the previous range of $33.5-$35 per share.
What about the stock
The company's shares rose more than 8% in trading on Thursday, April 30. Since the beginning of the year they are in minus by 14%. Such dynamics in recent months Eli Lilly's securities demonstrated also on the background of concerns that the company's new oral drug for weight loss Foundayo will not be able to effectively compete with the tablet version of Wegovy from the Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk, approved in December, Investopedia writes. Foundayo was approved under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) fast-track process and will enter the market about three months behind Novo Nordisk's tablet version of Wegovy, opening up a new phase of competition in the weight-loss drug (GLP-1) market, CNBC writes.
What the analysts are saying
Eli Lilly may once again approach a market capitalization of $1 trillion, according to Seeking Alpha analyst Edmund Ingham, head of Investing Group Haggerston BioHealth. The company's capitalization now stands at $821 billion, according to Yahoo Finance.
"The world's most valuable pharmaceutical company was already approaching a valuation of over $1 trillion - a first for the industry - in 2025, and with results like this, it could well return that level," the analyst said of Eli Lilly. The Mounjaro drug "is likely to be the best-selling drug in the world, and with Zepbound's backing, the company remains unrivaled," he said.
Of the 31 analysts covering the company's securities, the majority - 24 - recommend buying them. Six advise to keep them in the portfolio and only one - to sell. Nevertheless, on April 27 analysts at Leerink Partners lowered their target price on shares of Eli Lilly from $1296 to $1058 per security, maintaining a "buy" recommendation (Outperform rating). This target implies the growth of Eli Lilly shares by 24% relative to the last closing price.
This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor
