TLDR
- Eli Lilly beat Q1 earnings expectations, posting adjusted EPS of $8.55 vs. the $6.97 consensus.
- Revenue hit $19.8 billion, up 56% year-over-year, topping the $17.6 billion estimate.
- Mounjaro revenue jumped 125% to $8.7 billion; Zepbound climbed 80% to $4.2 billion.
- Lilly raised its full-year 2026 EPS guidance to $35.50–$37.00, up from $33.50–$35.00.
- New oral GLP-1 pill Foundayo received 3,707 U.S. prescriptions in its first week, below analyst expectations of around 8,000.
Eli Lilly turned in a quarter that was hard to argue with. The pharma giant beat estimates on both the top and bottom lines, then raised guidance — exactly what investors wanted to see.
$LLY (Eli Lilly) #earnings are out: pic.twitter.com/K7GBTJ8nOi
— The Earnings Correspondent (@earnings_guy) April 30, 2026
The company reported adjusted earnings per share of $8.55 for Q1 2026, clearing the analyst consensus of $6.97 by $1.58. Revenue came in at $19.8 billion, well ahead of the $17.6 billion estimate and up 56% from $12.7 billion in the same period last year.
That revenue growth was driven largely by volume — up 65% — though lower realized prices on Mounjaro and Zepbound knocked about 13 percentage points off the top.
Mounjaro and Zepbound Keep Delivering
Mounjaro, Lilly’s diabetes drug, posted a 125% revenue surge to $8.7 billion. Zepbound, its weight-loss counterpart, rose 80% to $4.2 billion.
U.S. revenue grew 43% to $12.1 billion. International revenue jumped 81% to $7.7 billion, showing that demand for GLP-1 drugs isn’t just a domestic story.
Gross margin came in at 82.6% on an adjusted basis, down slightly from the prior year due to pricing pressure on its flagship drugs.
CEO David Ricks called it a strong start to the year. “We delivered 56% revenue growth in the first quarter and raised our full-year revenue guidance by $2 billion,” he said.
Lilly lifted its 2026 revenue guidance to $82.0–$85.0 billion, up from $80.0–$83.0 billion. The midpoint of $83.5 billion sits above the analyst consensus of $81.67 billion.
The updated adjusted EPS range of $35.50–$37.00 compares to the prior range of $33.50–$35.00, with the $36.25 midpoint topping the $34.53 consensus.
Foundayo’s Early Numbers Disappoint
Lilly’s oral GLP-1 pill Foundayo launched earlier in April and drew close attention as a potential market-share grab from rival Novo Nordisk. Novo has had a head start in the oral weight-loss drug space.
Foundayo received 3,707 prescriptions in the U.S. in the week ending April 17 — roughly half the ~8,000 analysts expected. That early miss is a watch item for investors.
Ricks described the drug as one that will “meaningfully expand the number of people who can benefit from GLP-1s,” citing its flexibility: it can be taken any time of day, without food or water restrictions — unlike existing oral GLP-1 options.
The stock was up more than 5% in premarket trading following the results before paring some of those gains.
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