Eli Lilly has raised its revenue guidance for 2024, as weight-loss drug Zepbound (tirzepatide) propelled the drugmaker’s financial performance in the second quarter.
Shares in the company opened 11.8% higher when the market opened following the Q2 earnings release on 8 August. Though shares dipped during the day, prices recovered when the market opened on 9 August. Eli Lilly has a market cap of $761.1bn, currently making it the most valuable pharmaceutical company in the world.
Eli Lilly raised its full-year sales forecast by $3bn to the range of $45.4bn to $46.6bn. The company cited strong performance from Zepbound, as well as its type 2 diabetes treatment counterpart Mounjaro, which has the same active ingredient of tirzepatide.
GlobalData managing analyst Sara Reci told Pharmaceutical Technology: "Although Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy initially seemed to have a strong market presence earlier this year due to its extensive commercial insurance coverage, Eli Lilly is rapidly closing the gap."
Zepbound, launched in the US in November 2023, saw revenues of $1.24bn for Q2. For comparison, its revenue in Q1 was $517m, meaning the drug has already achieved blockbuster status for the calendar year, bringing in sales so far of over $1.7bn.
Sales of diabetes drug Mounjaro totalled $3.1bn in Q2, compared to $979.7m in the same period last year. Eli Lilly said that growth outside the US was primarily driven by the launch of KwikPen, a pre-filled disposable pen with four doses of the drug.
Eli Lilly said that higher realised prices were primarily driven by Mounjaro in the US, which had its net price “positively impacted” by improved access and savings card-related dynamics. Commercially insured patients had been able to pay $25 for a one-, two-month, or three-month prescription. The list price of the drug is currently $1,069 per fill.
Eli Lilly also has beneficial coverage plans for Zepbound, with Reci saying the drug "is included on approximately 86% of commercial insurance coverage lists," which "significantly bolsters its prospects for success".
Eli Lilly’s results come just days after competitor Novo Nordisk posted underwhelming Q2 sales for weight-loss rival drug Wegovy (semaglutide), with the drug generating $1.71bn. Whilst Novo Nordisk suffered from supply bottlenecks, Eli Lilly’s CEO David Ricks stated it had “advanced [its] manufacturing expansion agenda”, a key factor in meeting the boom in demand for weight loss drugs.
Eli Lilly invested a further $5.3bn in its Indiana manufacturing site in the US in May this year, a facility that makes tirzepatide – the active ingredient used in both Zepbound and Mounjaro.
Supply challenges have significantly impacted market share for weight loss therapies in the US, which Reci says "sparked a competitive race between Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to expand their manufacturing capacities.
"Eli Lilly has announced plans to further enhance its production capabilities by introducing 2.5mg and 5mg single-dose Zepbound vials, which require less manufacturing effort and create additional capacity. By effectively addressing these supply issues, Eli Lilly is demonstrating a competitive advantage over Novo Nordisk."
Zepbound is forecast to generate sales of $27.2bn by 2030, according to GlobalData’s Pharma Intelligence Centre. Wegovy’s revenue, meanwhile, is not predicted to grow at the same rate, with sales predicted to reach $18.7bn by the same year.
Along with Mounjaro and Zepbound, breast cancer drug Verzenio (abemaciclib), autoimmune therapy Taltz (ixekizumab), and sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitor Jardiance (empagliflozin) also drove revenue growth for the company.
GlobalData is the parent company of Pharmaceutical Technology.
Eli Lilly hasn’t just made strides in the metabolic disorders space. Last month, the company gained US Food and Drug Administration approval for Alzheimer’s treatment Kisunla (donanemab-azbt). The drug is expected to bring in sales of $3.22bn as the company competes with Eisai and Biogen’s Leqembi (lecanemab).
