When Eli Lilly reports third-quarter earnings on Wednesday, investors will be focusing closely on the pace of growth of its key diabetes and obesity drugs, Mounjaro and Zepbound, and potentially bracing for big stock moves. The pharmaceuticals giant has been on a hot streak, exceeding Wall Street's expectations for five straight quarters. Analysts surveyed by LSEG predict Lilly will earn $1.
47 per share on revenue of $12.11 billion in the third quarter. Its last two quarterly reports have resulted in big gains for the stock, which jumped 9.
5% and 6%, respectively. But according to Bespoke Investment Group, Lilly tends to beat earnings about 66% of the time, and has averaged 0.1% decline when results come out.
Lilly's growth is on a new trajectory due to GLP-1 medications, and many wonder if it will be able to raise its sales forecast again. The company has worked diligently to expand manufacturing capacity for the blockbuster drugs, which both use tirzepatide, and was able to remove the products from the Food and Drug Administration's shortage list during the latest quarter. Investors will look to gain insight into the pace of new prescriptions and the expansion to markets outside the U.
S., which is still in its early days. They also will want to see whether patients are shifting from using compounding pharmacies to either Lilly's branded GLP-1 medications or to a new, less expensive version that does not use an autoinjector pen, which company introduced over the summer.
Sale.