Eli Lilly craters after disappointing trial results for its GLP-1 pill, despite cheery earnings results

Eli Lilly dropped sharply after it reported disappointing trial results for its next-gen weight-loss pill alongside earnings results that crushed Wall Street expectations thanks to its blockbuster GLP-1 drugs that were already on the market.

Minutes before releasing its earnings results, Eli Lilly reported late-stage trial results for its GLP-1 pill, orforglipron, which helped patients lose an average of 12.4% of their body weight, which is less than a rival pill made by Novo Nordisk.

Shares plunged 13% in recent premarket trading.

It also reported sales of $15.5 billion, beating the $14.7 billion analysts were expecting, thanks to booming sales of its GLP-1 shots. That contributed to a strong earnings beat, with adjusted earnings per share coming in at $6.31 — significantly higher than the $5.60 analysts polled by FactSet were expecting.

The company reported $3.4 billion worth of sales of Zepbound, its weight-loss shot, and $5.2 billion of sales of Mounjaro, its diabetes shot. Both beat analysts’ estimates and mark the first quarter both shots outsold Novo’s respective drugs, Wegovy and Ozempic.

Lilly so far has been catching up to Novo Nordisk, which was the first to bring GLP-1s to market but has seen its sales decelerate in recent quarters. The company slashed its annual sales outlook last week, blaming compounding pharmacies for lower-than-expected sales of its weight-loss drugs.