Key Takeaways
- Morgan Stanley maintains Overweight rating on Eli Lilly (LLY) stock with $1,313 price objective
- Mounjaro weekly scripts reached ~724,500, climbing from ~705,300 in the previous week
- Zepbound scripts surged to ~598,100, advancing from ~500,900 week-over-week
- Lilly commands ~60% of weekly new prescription market share in the GLP-1 category
- Fourth-quarter EPS of $7.54 exceeded forecasts, while revenue surged 42.6% year-over-year
Eli Lilly’s leading weight-loss and diabetes therapies, Mounjaro and Zepbound, demonstrated prescription volume expansion during the week concluded February 27, 2026, based on IQVIA analytics referenced by Morgan Stanley.
Mounjaro registered approximately 724,500 total prescriptions during the reporting period, advancing from roughly 705,300 scripts the preceding week. New Mounjaro prescriptions totaled approximately 361,600, versus 352,700 in the prior week.
Zepbound exhibited more pronounced momentum. Total prescription volume reached approximately 598,100, climbing from 500,900 the previous week. New prescriptions expanded to 328,300 from 298,600.
Morgan Stanley preserved its Overweight assessment on LLY stock while maintaining the $1,313 price objective. The investment bank projects approximately 7% upside potential to its 2026 projections for both medications combined.
Aggregate GLP-1 prescriptions across Lilly and Novo Nordisk expanded roughly 30% on a year-over-year basis, demonstrating sustained robust demand throughout the therapeutic category.
Lilly’s complete GLP-1 portfolio — encompassing Mounjaro, Zepbound, and Trulicity — captured approximately 60% of weekly new prescription market share, edging higher from 59% during the prior week.
Financial Performance and Quarterly Results
LLY stock delivered Q4 earnings per share of $7.54, surpassing analyst consensus expectations of $7.48 by $0.06. Quarterly revenue reached $19.29 billion, considerably exceeding the $17.85 billion forecast. This represented a 42.6% increase compared to the corresponding quarter in the previous year.
The pharmaceutical giant established its FY2026 earnings guidance range at $33.50–$35.00 per share. Net profit margin for the quarter registered 31.66%, while return on equity measured 102.94%.
Lilly increased its quarterly dividend payment to $1.73, advancing from $1.50. The annualized distribution now totals $6.92, delivering a yield of approximately 0.7%.
The stock commenced Friday trading at $982.85. Its 52-week trading band extends from $623.78 to $1,133.95. The 50-day moving average rests at $1,047.37, while the 200-day average registers $937.23.
Wall Street Ratings and Institutional Holdings
Institutional investors hold 82.53% of LLY stock outstanding shares. Several investment firms expanded their positions throughout Q3 2026, including KCM Investment Advisors, which boosted its holdings by 14%, and M1 Capital Management, increasing its stake by 10.8%.
Integrity Advisory Solutions initiated a fresh position valued at roughly $1.07 million during the reporting period.
The Street consensus stands at “Moderate Buy” with a mean price objective of $1,229.59. Wells Fargo elevated its target to $1,280 with an Overweight recommendation. Jefferies increased its target to $1,300, assigning a Buy rating. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and $1,250 price target.
Seven sell-side analysts revised their earnings projections upward following the fourth-quarter earnings release.
Lilly additionally introduced its “Employer Connect” initiative, engineered to facilitate employer-sponsored coverage for obesity medications, including Zepbound, featuring a $449 single-patient KwikPen pricing alternative.
Orforglipron, Lilly’s investigational oral GLP-1 compound, outperformed oral semaglutide in a Type 2 diabetes clinical trial across both primary and secondary efficacy endpoints.
