New York, Feb 27, 2026, 12:07 PM EST — Regular session
- Eli Lilly shares up about 0.8% in late morning trade after falling 0.7% on Thursday
- Full trial results for oral diabetes/weight-loss pill orforglipron showed higher discontinuations than Novo’s oral semaglutide
- Traders eye U.S. regulatory timing for obesity and the next wave of late-stage readouts
Eli Lilly and Company shares edged up on Friday, steadying after a two-day slide, as investors digested full results from a head-to-head trial of its experimental oral GLP-1 pill orforglipron. The stock was up about 0.8% at $1,030.31, after ending Thursday at $1,022.02. 1
The details matter now because Lilly’s next growth leg is tied to how fast it can widen access beyond injectable obesity and diabetes drugs. Pills are easier to ship, store and take, and that changes the size of the market — and the intensity of the fight over pricing and insurance coverage.
But tolerability can make or break that pitch. Investors have learned the hard way that the best weight-loss number on a slide deck is not the same as what patients stick with in the real world.
On Thursday, full results showed orforglipron caused more side effects and more treatment discontinuations than Novo Nordisk’s oral semaglutide in a diabetes trial, adding a new wrinkle to a race that has largely been about efficacy. 2
Lilly said orforglipron beat oral semaglutide on blood-sugar control and weight loss in the 52-week ACHIEVE-3 study, which enrolled 1,698 adults with type 2 diabetes on metformin. “The differences were clinically meaningful,” said Dr. Julio Rosenstock, the study’s lead investigator, while Lilly executive Kenneth Custer said the company was “focused on making this option available as quickly as possible.” 3
The company put numbers around the trade-off: discontinuation rates due to adverse events ran about 8.7% to 9.7% for orforglipron versus roughly 4.5% to 4.9% for oral semaglutide, according to the published results. 4
GLP-1 drugs mimic a gut hormone that helps curb appetite and regulate blood sugar. A1C — a three-month measure of average blood glucose — is a standard yardstick in diabetes trials, and payers tend to watch it as closely as weight change when deciding coverage.
Still, the downside scenario is plain: higher dropouts can blunt real-world effectiveness, complicate dosing strategies and give rivals ammunition in contract talks with insurers. Regulators can also press harder on labeling and post-marketing commitments when discontinuations stack up.
For now, traders will watch whether Friday’s modest rebound holds into the close, and how quickly the market shifts back to the next timetable question: U.S. action on orforglipron for obesity is expected in the second quarter, with another potential catalyst at the American Diabetes Association’s Scientific Sessions in New Orleans on June 5–8. 5
