Eli Lilly easily tops quarterly estimates, raises outlook as Zepbound and Mounjaro sales surge

Eli Lilly on Wednesday reported second-quarter earnings and revenue that blew past estimates and hiked its full-year sales outlook, as demand for its blockbuster weight loss drug Zepbound and diabetes treatment Mounjaro surged again.

The pharmaceutical giant now expects 2026 revenue to come in between $85 billion and $87 billion, up from a previous guidance of $82 billion to $85 billion.

Lilly projects its full-year adjusted profit to be between $35.50 and $36.50 per share, which compares with a previous outlook of $35.50 to $37 per share. The company said it raised the underlying profit guidance by $2.78 per share at the midpoint, but noted that it is offset by $3.03 per share in charges tied to deals in the quarter.

Shares of Lilly rose more than 5% in premarket trading Wednesday.

Fueled by a massive financial windfall from its obesity and diabetes drugs, Lilly is executing a historic M&A spending spree. The company most recently struck a deal to buy a psychedelics drugmaker in July, and also announced plans to buy three vaccine makers in May.

Resilient demand for Zepbound and Mounjaro has helped fuel several strong quarters for Lilly despite lower prices for the medications in the U.S.

Mounjaro's worldwide revenue rose 91% to $9.94 billion for the quarter, including U.S. sales of $4.8 billion. That surpassed the $8.99 billion in worldwide sales and $4.44 billion in U.S. revenue that analysts were expecting for the quarter, according to StreetAccount.

Mounjaro notably saw strength internationally, with sales outside the U.S. jumping 172%.