Eli Lilly Q1 2026 earnings: Mounjaro and Zepbound fuel a 56% revenue jump, guidance raised

April 30, 2026 · Published August 7, 2026

Eli Lilly's Q1 2026 revenue and profit both surged year over year on booming Mounjaro and Zepbound sales, and the company raised its full-year guidance.

Figures as reported by the company to the SEC for the quarter ended March 31, 2026. Analyst estimates are not part of a filing, so no comparison to expectations is shown.

Key takeaways

• Revenue rose 56% from a year earlier to $19.8 billion, with growth coming almost entirely from selling more medicine rather than charging more — volume was up 65%, while average prices actually fell.
• Net income jumped to $7.4 billion from $2.8 billion a year ago, roughly two-and-a-half times higher, as the diabetes and weight-loss drug business scaled up.
• Mounjaro (diabetes) and Zepbound (weight loss) remained the main engines of growth: Mounjaro sales more than doubled to $8.66 billion, helped by expansion overseas including addition to China’s national reimbursement list, while Zepbound sales grew 79% to $4.1 billion on strong demand.
• U.S. sales grew 43% to $12.1 billion and international sales grew 81% to $7.7 billion, showing the growth is broad-based rather than concentrated in one region.
• Lilly raised its full-year 2026 outlook, now expecting revenue of $82 billion to $85 billion (up from $80–83 billion) and adjusted profit of $35.50 to $37 per share (up from $33.50–35), signaling management’s confidence that demand will keep building through the year.
• Profitability metrics over the trailing year are elevated relative to prior norms: gross margin near 83% and net margin above 33%, reflecting how much of each new sales dollar is flowing through to profit as the newer drugs scale.
• Return on equity above 90% reflects how effectively the company is turning shareholder capital into profit, though it’s also influenced by Lilly’s relatively small equity base versus its debt and earnings.
• Coverage of the report framed Lilly as capturing roughly 60% of the GLP-1 (weight-loss/diabetes drug) market, underscoring its lead position in that fast-growing category.

Q1 2026 in context

Figures for the quarter ended Mar 2026 and the quarter ended Mar 2025, as reported to the SEC.

How the stock took it

Eli Lilly and Co closed at $851.21 on Apr 29, 2026, the last session before the report, and at $963.33 on May 1, 2026, the first session after it — +13.2% across the report.

Closes from the market's daily record. Each figure spans the report date — from the last session that closed before it to the first that closed after — because a company may report before the open or after the close.

Financial history →

Sources: company report · Yahoo Finance