Eli Lilly closed at a record after its weight-loss drugs lifted sales 39%

Eli Lilly

Eli Lilly rose 6.63% to US$1,373.70 on Thursday, a record close. Revenue grew 39% to US$24.4 billion in the September quarter, against the US$22.62 billion analysts expected.

Two versions of one medicine did most of the work. Mounjaro, sold for diabetes, brought in US$10.7 billion, up 65%. Zepbound, the same drug sold for weight loss, made US$5.3 billion, up 49%.

Lilly is selling far more doses for less money each. Its prices fell 15% worldwide in the quarter and 29% outside the US. Part of that came from China adding Mounjaro to the list of drugs its national health insurance pays for.

Chart: Eli Lilly's sales idled for years, then took off. Eli Lilly's revenue in the July-to-September quarter of each year, 2008 to 2026, in US$bn. This year's US$24.4bn was 39% more than a year earlier. — This story’s chart of the day: the numbers, the dark version and the animated version are on its own page. The chart’s page →

Lilly raised its full-year revenue forecast to between US$91 billion and US$92 billion, from US$85 billion to US$87 billion. It trimmed its profit forecast by 50 cents a share, to between US$35 and US$36.

Health care stocks closed at a record as investors moved money out of tech. Lilly is now worth about US$1.2 trillion.

The catch

each new market Lilly wins comes at a lower price per dose, and that works only while volumes grow this fast. AbbVie reports before Friday's open in New York, and its results will show whether the move into drugmakers runs wider than Lilly.

This story ran in Half a Trillion Friday 30 October’s edition, with the market snapshot, the other two stories, the numbers and the week ahead. Read the whole edition →

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