Lilly(US:LLY) The Motley Foolยท2025-02-06 16:29Core Insights - Eli Lilly's Q4 earnings report showed strong performance, with earnings per share at $5.32 and sales at $13.5 billion, surpassing analyst expectations of $5.08 per share and $13.4 billion in sales [1][2] Financial Performance - Q4 sales increased by 45% year over year, driven by strong demand for GLP-1 drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound, while non-GLP-1 drug sales also grew by 20% [2] - GAAP earnings per share more than doubled to $4.88, reflecting a 102% year-over-year growth, while full-year sales grew by 32% to $45 billion [3] Future Outlook - CEO David Ricks described 2024 as "highly successful," with projections for 2025 sales between $58 billion and $61 billion, indicating potential growth of up to 35.5% [4] - Earnings per share for 2025 are expected to range from $22.05 to $23.55, suggesting a strong outlook for continued earnings growth [4][5] - Current stock pricing at approximately 37 times the current year earnings, combined with the potential for doubling earnings annually, supports the argument for Eli Lilly stock as a buy [5]