What Sent Eli Lilly Stock Higher Over The Past Year?

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Eli Lilly (LLY) stock returned 61.9% over the year to October 22, 2026, against 15.7% for the S&P 500. During that period, management raised its 2026 revenue forecast on its August 5, 2026 earnings call. So what did Lilly’s business do over that year to earn a gain of that size?

How Much Has Eli Lilly’s Profit Grown?

Net income at Lilly nearly doubled to $26.7 billion over the twelve months ended June 2026, up from $13.8 billion a year earlier. Revenue over those twelve months rose 49.6% to $79.7 billion. Profit grew faster than sales because Lilly kept more of each dollar it sold, widening its operating margin to 49.7% from 42.1% a year earlier.

Lilly was not the only drugmaker to rise: Merck returned 73% over the same dates, gaining more than Lilly did. But Lilly’s profit grew faster than its share price over the year to June 2026, making the stock cheaper against its earnings even as it climbed. Shares traded at 40.1 times earnings at the end of June 2026, down from 50.7 a year before.

Which Eli Lilly Drugs Supplied Its Sales Growth?

Lilly’s revenue growth in the second quarter of 2026 came mainly from two drugs, Mounjaro and Zepbound, management said on the August 5 call. The two treatments generated $14.9 billion of the $23.0 billion Lilly reported for that quarter. Management said Lilly also leads the market for these diabetes and obesity drugs outside the U.S., holding about 55% of it.

On the same call, management raised its 2026 revenue forecast to between $85 billion and $87 billion, pointing to the strong first half of its key products as the reason.

Eli Lilly Still Costs Nearly Twice The S&P 500

At the October 22, 2026 close, Lilly stock traded at 43.7 times its past twelve months of earnings, against 23.0 for the S&P 500. The multiple has come down over the year, but you still pay close to twice the market’s price for each dollar Lilly earns.

Mounjaro And Zepbound Now Sell For Less In America

The price of those two drugs is the part to keep an eye on. Across U.S. sales, price fell 3% in the second quarter of 2026, driven by Zepbound and Mounjaro. A change to rebate and discount estimates helped that figure, and without such adjustments, U.S. price fell 9%. Management said on the call that it expects price to go down as more patients gain access, and that its forecast already includes that.

Combined sales of Mounjaro and Zepbound are the number to watch when Lilly next reports on October 29, 2026.

How To Act On LLY?

Not necessarily on Eli Lilly alone, if your goal is long-term wealth. Wealth is built by owning the companies that keep outperforming, the leaders of their industries, wherever they are. Eli Lilly is one. Over the five years to October 2026, its stock rose 461%, ahead of 55 of the 60 other companies in Pharmaceuticals, where the typical company fell 33%.

Finding companies like these takes comparison across industries and sectors, and that is what the Trefis High Quality (HQ) Portfolio does. It holds 30 quality companies in equal weight and, since its inception in September 2020, has returned more than 105%, ahead of a benchmark that combines the S&P 500, S&P Mid-cap and Russell 2000. See how we find the leaders.

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