3. Eli Lilly And Co. (NYSE:LLY)
Share Price as of October 18: $918.33
Surge in Share Price in 5 Years: 745.30%
Stock Split Confirmed: no
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 100
Eli Lilly And Co. (NYSE:LLY) is a global pharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures, and markets prescription drugs for various therapeutic areas. It’s known for its innovative research and development efforts, which have led to the creation of important medications for conditions such as diabetes, cancer, and autoimmune diseases. Some of its products include insulin, antidepressants, and treatments for cancer, diabetes, and autoimmune diseases, sold in over 125 countries.
In Q2 2024, revenue soared 35.98% to $11.30 billion, driven by new products generating nearly $3.5 billion. The company is adding 11 new obesity treatments and investing $5.3 billion in Indiana manufacturing.
The company’s strong growth is driven by its weight loss drugs, Mounjaro and Zepbound, which together could generate up to $25 billion in peak sales. While Zepbound contributed $1.2 billion in Q2 revenue, the company is also developing promising next-generation candidates. It’s investing in future growth with orforglipron and retatrutide, projected to generate over $1 billion annually by 2030. The company is also seeking regulatory approval for a once-weekly insulin medication.
The company achieved significant milestones, including Alzheimer’s disease approval for Kisunla, Japan approval for Jaypirca, and positive Phase 3 results for tirzepatide in heart failure and obesity. In July, the company acquired Morphic, a developer of oral therapies for chronic diseases. Additionally, management announced the availability of new Zepbound doses.
Eli Lilly And Co.’s (NYSE:LLY) strong financial performance, innovative drug pipeline, and strategic investments solidify its position as a leading healthcare company. Revenue guidance for 2024 has been increased by $3 billion. Despite increasing competition due to expiring patents, its positioned for continued growth.
PGIM Jennison Health Sciences Fund stated the following regarding Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) in its Q2 2024 investor letter:
“Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) is a diversified biopharmaceutical company with core franchises in Diabetes, Obesity, Immunology, Neurodegeneration, and Oncology. The company is one of the two global leaders in diabetes with blockbuster products in Trulicity and recently launched Mounjaro (tirzepatide) to serve this large underserved market. To date, the Mounjaro launch is the strongest for any diabetes drug ever launched, which we attribute to off label usage in the obesity indication as well as on label use in diabetes. We believe the tirzepatide (the generic name for Mounjaro) franchise is also uniquely positioned to grow substantially from here thanks to its recent approval for obesity. To that note, in late 2023, Eli Lilly received approval for tirzepatide in obesity and is commercializing it for obesity under a new brand name, Zepbound. While still early in the launch, uptake has been extremely strong, exceeding that of both Wegovy and Mounjaro at the same timepoint in their launches. While Alzheimer’s Disease has been a tough market for drug developers, Eli Lilly has breakthrough designation from the food and drug administration (FDA) for donanemab and recently presented Phase III pivotal trial data that positions donanemab as the most efficacious drug in the class. In June, the FDA advisory committee voted unanimously in favor of donanemab as an effective treatment where the benefits outweigh the risks, praising the therapy as innovative. Donanemab was then approved under the brand name Kisunla in early July. Eli Lilly also has exciting franchises in dermatology, immunology, and oncology that are starting to add meaningfully to growth. With a proven history of strong commercial execution and one of the highest research and development (R&D) success rates in the industry, we see opportunity for continued success. With a lack of meaningful patent expirations for the rest of the decade. Eli Lilly is uniquely positioned amongst its larger-cap peers. Recent positive performance has been driven by the continued strong growth of Mounjaro and Zepbound, which led to a big guidance raise on the 1Q call, an unusual action for Eli Lilly this early in the year, which speaks to their confidence in the strong trends they are seeing.”
