Eli Lilly’s weight-loss pill meets target in key diabetes trial

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US pharmaceutical group Eli Lilly has announced that the latest trial of its anti-obesity pill has met weight-loss targets, boosting its plans to seek approval for the drug as it fights for market dominance with rival Novo Nordisk.

Lilly said on Tuesday that its orforglipron pill reduced the body weight of people who were overweight and suffered from diabetes by 10.5 per cent on average. It noted that the side effects were similar to those for its injectable weight-loss drugs.

The results come after the market was disappointed earlier this month by the results of an orforglipron trial in people without diabetes: participants lost an average of 12.4 per cent of their body weight, at the lower end of expectations.

The results will intensify its long-running battle for market dominance with Novo Nordisk, which in May submitted its first weight-loss pill for US regulatory approval. Novo’s pill helped patients with diabetes lose about 9.2 per cent of their body weight at the highest dose in a trial.

“Today’s data reads as expected, with room for competition in the oral market from both Lilly and Novo,” Evan Seigerman, an analyst with BMO Capital Markets, said on Tuesday. Lilly’s shares were up 4.2 per cent after its announcement, while Novo’s Copenhagen-listed shares were down 4 per cent.

Kenneth Custer, an executive vice-president at Lilly, said the company anticipated it would submit orforglipron for approval by the US Food and Drug Administration later this year. Analysts have said the FDA could give the go-ahead next year.

No oral versions of the new generation of blockbuster drugs have received approval to treat obesity yet, so positive trial results from Lilly and its rivals are being closely watched.

A weight-loss pill would also cost less to manufacture and store, as the current injectable versions need to be refrigerated.

Obese and overweight people who also have diabetes can find it more difficult to lose weight, depending on their age and other factors. “We are really excited to see [the] 10.5 per cent weight loss,” said Custer.

But investors have shown concern. The earlier Lilly trial results for orforglipron pushed its shares to their lowest level since January 2024. Lilly’s shares are down 7 per cent this year, while Novo has fallen almost 44 per cent over the same period.

After the disappointing earlier results, Lilly executives and board directors bought a combined $4.5mn of its stock. It was the most insider buying at the company in a single quarter since 2019, according to VerityData.

Globally, “probably more than 1bn people could potentially benefit from these medicines”, said Custer, referring to all obesity drugs. “There is no way we are going to be able to get there with injectables.”