On Thursday, Eli Lilly (LLY.US) reported its second-quarter earnings. The company reported $11.3 billion in revenue, up 36% year-over-year, beating expectations. Earnings per share were $3.92, also beating expectations.
The company raised its 2024 revenue guidance for the second time this year, thanks to the blockbuster weight-loss drug Zepbound. Zepbound's second-quarter sales were $1.2 billion, beating the $819 million consensus estimate. Eli Lilly now expects full-year revenue of $44.5 billion to $46.6 billion, above the previous guidance of up to $43.6 billion.
As the demand for weight-loss drugs continues to surge, Eli Lilly and its rival Novo Nordisk (NVO.US) have struggled to quickly ramp up production. As Novo Nordisk continues to restrict the supply of its small-dose Wegovy, Eli Lilly's supply constraints have started to ease. Eli Lilly said that with increased capacity, the situation will significantly improve in the second half.
Jared Holz, an analyst at UBS, said that Eli Lilly's beat on its second-quarter earnings "should help to alleviate some of the concerns around the pace of its business growth." He added that it is "very unusual" to see a large pharmaceutical company like Eli Lilly report such strong results in the second quarter.
Earlier this week, Novo Nordisk reported disappointing Wegovy second-quarter sales, citing the impact of price discounts to US prescription drug benefit managers. The shares of Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk have been under pressure as competition in the weight-loss drug space intensifies.
As of Thursday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) shortage database had listed all doses of Eli Lilly's Zepbound and diabetes drug Mounjaro as available. Eli Lilly CEO David Ricks said last week that he expects the shortage to "quickly" end after several months.
Eli Lilly also said on Thursday that it plans to launch a single-dose vial of Zepbound in the coming weeks, after patients asked the company earlier this year to help alleviate drug shortages.
As of the time of publication, Eli Lilly was up 11.77% to $863.01. The stock has risen 32% since the beginning of the year, as the market has been strong for its weight-loss and diabetes drugs.
The weight-loss drug sector was up in premarket trading, with Novo Nordisk up more than 5%, Viking Therapeutics (VKTX.US) up nearly 4%, and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK.US) up nearly 3%.