Eli Lilly’s shares plummeted 14% on Thursday, marking the company’s largest single-day loss in decades, after unveiling data for its obesity treatment pill orforglipron. The medication was expected to help obese and overweight patients lose weight but fell behind Wall Street’s projections.
According to FactSet, Eli Lilly’s daily obesity pill helped patients lose an average of 12% of their body weight, short of the predicted 15%. However, the highest dosage of the experimental pill showed promising results, with over 59% of patients losing at least 10% of their body weight and nearly 40% losing at least 15%.
Eli Lilly CEO David Ricks expressed confidence in the results, stating that they were “right on thesis for us” despite falling short of expectations. The company plans to file for regulatory approval by the end of the year.
The news comes as investors await a decision from Novo Nordisk on its oral version of Wegovy, which has reported an average weight loss of 15%. Other pharmaceutical firms, including Pfizer and Roche, are also developing oral weight-loss medications with varying levels of success.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2025/08/07/eli-lilly-shares-plummet-14-toward-worst-day-in-25-years-heres-why-its-down