Jim Cramer: Lilly Stock Laid to Waste After Pill Miss, But Long-Term Game's Still On
Jim Cramer criticized Eli Lilly's stock performance after disappointing results from a late-stage trial of its weight-loss pill, which achieved only a 12% weight reduction compared to a 15% target. The stock fell 15%, but Lilly's CEO purchased $1 million in shares, indicating confidence. Despite the setback, Cramer remains optimistic about the long-term potential, suggesting that new breakthroughs or positive data on its GLP-1 platform are necessary for recovery.
Jim Cramer isn't pulling any punches on Eli Lilly .
On Mad Money, he said the stock was laid to waste after late-stage trial results for its experimental weight-loss pill underwhelmed investors. Wall Street had hoped the oral drug would match the weight loss from Lilly's blockbuster GLP-1 injections, but instead it delivered a 12% reduction in body weight solid, but short of the 15% target. Shares fell 15% on the news, though Lilly's CEO quickly bought $1 million worth of stock, signaling confidence.
Cramer, who owns LLY in his Charitable Trust, admits the results stung, but he's still long-term bullish. He says for the stock to break out from here, Lilly needs either new breakthroughs in areas like heart or brain health, or fresh positive data showing more upside for its GLP-1 platform. As he put it, the Achilles heel of these drugs is that they work so well patients might stop taking them a challenge Lilly must tackle to keep growth humming.
