On February 6th, Eli Lilly projected annual profits that largely exceed Wall Street estimates, offering some relief to investors following another quarter where sales fell short for its popular diabetes and weight-loss medications.
Last month, the company acknowledged that it anticipates sales figures for the diabetes drug Mounjaro and the weight-loss treatment Zepbound to be below analysts' predictions for a second consecutive quarter.
Ahead of the market opening, shares of the U.S. pharmaceutical company rose by 1%. Although Lilly's stock value has more than doubled over the last two years, making it the most valuable healthcare firm globally, it has been stagnant since October when disappointing sales data for its highly anticipated treatments was reported.
The weight-loss market, expected to reach $150 billion by the early 2030s, is currently dominated by Lilly's Zepbound and Novo Nordisk's Wegovy. Both companies have experienced rapid growth attributed to investor interest in their diabetes and weight-loss offerings.
Danish competitor Novo highlighted a strong demand for obesity treatments in the U.S. and other regions for the year compared to 2024.
Lilly previously projected total sales between $58 billion and $61 billion by 2025, banking on the expansion of Mounjaro into new markets like China, India, Brazil, and Mexico for both diabetes and obesity patients. Analysts estimated revenues of $59.21 billion for 2025.
Expectations from investors and analysts indicate that Lilly will focus on promoting Zepbound this year to gain a larger market share from Wegovy, an older and more established rival.
-Zepbound sales were reported at $1.91 billion for the fourth quarter, falling short of the $2.03 billion analysts had anticipated. The drug had generated $175.8 million in sales during the fourth quarter of 2023 when it was launched.
-Lilly anticipates earning between $22.50 and $24.00 per share this year on an adjusted basis. Analysts had anticipated a profit of $22.86 per share, based on data from LSEG.
-Quarterly sales for the diabetes drug Mounjaro totaled $3.53 billion, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.27 billion.