New York, Feb 19, 2026, 15:04 EST — Regular session
- Eli Lilly shares down 0.2% in afternoon trade, near $1,019
- Company has flagged new late-stage data pairing Zepbound with psoriasis drug Taltz
- Next on the calendar: CFO fireside chat at TD Cowen health care conference on March 2
Eli Lilly and Company shares edged lower on Thursday, trading down about 0.2% at $1,018.93 in afternoon dealings. The stock has ranged from $1,007.29 to $1,023.37 so far in the session.
The modest move comes as investors weigh a string of updates tied to Lilly’s push to broaden demand for tirzepatide — sold as Zepbound for obesity and as Mounjaro for diabetes — while the broader U.S. market also leaned lower.
On Wednesday, Lilly said Zepbound used alongside its psoriasis treatment Taltz beat Taltz alone in a late-stage study of patients with plaque psoriasis and obesity, with more patients reaching complete skin clearance and meaningful weight loss. Phase 3b trials are late-stage tests designed to support how a medicine is used in practice; this one was open-label, meaning patients and doctors knew which treatment they received. (Reuters)
In a separate company release, Lilly said 27.1% of patients on Taltz plus Zepbound hit complete skin clearance — known as PASI 100 — and at least 10% weight loss at 36 weeks, versus 5.8% on Taltz alone. “Psoriasis and obesity can profoundly impact how people feel,” Adrienne Brown, president of Lilly Immunology, said. (PR Newswire)
Mark Lebwohl, a Mount Sinai dermatologist and the trial’s principal investigator, called the results “especially remarkable” given the study’s high-BMI population and hard-to-treat disease, according to the same release. Lilly said the most common adverse events in the combination arm included nausea, diarrhea and constipation. (PR Newswire)
Deal headlines have also been in the mix. Australia’s CSL said this week it granted Lilly certain rights to develop and commercialize clazakizumab for uses beyond CSL’s end-stage kidney disease program, for an upfront payment of $100 million plus potential milestones and royalties. (Reuters)
“Clazakizumab is a promising therapeutic candidate,” Bill Mezzanotte, head of research and development at CSL, said in the announcement. (Reuters)
Lilly has also been talking up supply-chain plans. A senior executive told Reuters the company wants India to become a hub for its global supply chain as Mounjaro sales in the country surged, and said Lilly expects to keep scaling a previously announced $1 billion commitment to contract manufacturing there. (Reuters)
“We are actually looking at India to be a hub, part of our global supply chain, and therefore supplying the world,” Winselow Tucker, president and general manager of Lilly India, told Reuters, describing plans that come as Novo Nordisk competes in the market with Wegovy. (Reuters)
Still, traders tend to treat topline clinical results as a first step, not a finish. The psoriasis study was open-label, detailed results are not yet published, and any bid to expand labeling or marketing claims would depend on regulators and follow-on data — while pricing and supply remain the fault lines in obesity drugs globally. (PR Newswire)
Next up, investors will listen for any incremental detail on demand, supply and pipeline priorities when CFO Lucas Montarce appears at TD Cowen’s Annual Health Care Conference on March 2, with a webcast scheduled for 3:10 p.m. ET. (PR Newswire)
