Eli Lilly shares surge on a beat-and-raise, proving the stock's swoon was a mistake

Obesity drug giant Eli Lilly on Thursday reported a monster first quarter, fortifying our conviction to stick with the stock after a period of sluggishness. Revenue in the three months ended in March jumped 56% from a year ago to $19.8 billion, trouncing the LSEG consensus of $17.6 billion. Adjusted earnings per share totaled $8.55, more than doubling on an annual basis and crushing the $6.66 consensus, according to LSEG. LLY 1Y mountain Eli Lilly's stock performance over the past 12 months. Shares surged about 10% on Thursday. The stock came into the day down 21% for the year and roughly 23% off its late November all-time closing high of $1,110. The weakness in the stock was tied to a broader rotation away from the healthcare sector, and broader questions about the competitive dynamics in the booming GLP-1 market. Bottom line Lilly knocked it out of the park. As if the massive top and bottom-line beats were not enough, the drugmaker raised its full-year guidance for revenue, operating profitability and earnings per share. "This is one of the greatest pharma stories," Jim Cramer said Thursday. A big reason why Lilly's results are so impressive: It's doing this despite weaker realized drug prices in the U.S., partially stemming from most favored nation agreements with the Trump administration in exchange for Medicare access. Competition from Novo Nordisk , the maker of Ozempic for diabetes and Wegovy for weight loss, is another factor. …