Rapidly climbing sales of the new obesity drug Zepbound and its counterpart for diabetes, Mounjaro, pushed Eli Lilly to a better-than-expected first-quarter profit.
The drugmaker also hiked its forecast for 2024 well beyond analyst expectations after sales of Mounjaro more than tripled in the year’s first quarter.
Lilly said it was still dealing with supply issues that also hampered the company in the fourth quarter, with strong demand for both drugs outpacing its production hikes. But the company expects its most significant increases to occur in the back half of the year.
Shares of Lilly jumped Tuesday after the company detailed results.
Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly and Co. recorded $517 million in sales from Zepbound, which received approval from U.S. regulators last November.
Total Mounjaro sales more than tripled to $1.81 billion from $568 million in last year’s quarter.
Sales of the breast cancer treatment Verzenio also jumped 40% to top $1 billion in the quarter.
Those drugs helped the company’s total revenue rise 26% to $8.77 billion. But Wall Street expected a little more. Analysts had forecast $8.94 billion in sales, according to a survey by FactSet.
A 26% drop in sales for Trulicity softened some of the company’s gains from Mounjaro and Zepbound. Lilly said it also dealt with supply constraints for the diabetes treatment.
Lilly also spent more money in the quarter, with the company’s research and development costs jumping 27%. Marketing, selling and administrative expenses also increased 12% due to drug launches.
Overall, Lilly’s net income jumped 67% to $2.24 billion. Earnings adjusted for one-time items totaled $2.58 per share.
Wall Street expected $2.47 per share.
For the full year, Lilly raised its forecasted range for adjusted earnings per share by more than a dollar. It now expects earnings of between $13.50 and $14 per share. That would more than double the company’s total of $6.32 per share from 2023.
Analysts forecast adjusted earnings of $12.49 per share.
Shares of Lilly jumped nearly 7% to $787.64 after markets opened Tuesday morning, just a few dollars away from its all-time high. Broader indexes slipped.
The stock had already climbed 26% so far this year. It topped $800 in early March to set a new all-time high.
