Lilly announces ‘solid’ Q1 results

Pharmaceutical supplier Lilly has announced solid results for the first quarter of 2008.

It has reported increased sales of $4.808 billion (£2.42 billion) – a rise of 13 per cent compared to the same three-month period during 2007.

John Lechleiter, Lilly president and new chief executive officer, explained that the double digit growth was primarily driven by volume.

“The sales growth of Cymbalta, Cialis, Alimta, Forteo and Humalog was especially encouraging,” he added.

Worldwide sales volume increased by eight per cent, Lilly’s results revealed.

However, despite Lilly asserting strong results, news agency Reuters described the growth and sales figures as lower-than-expected by analysts previously responding to Reuters Estimates.

It suggested that “disappointing” sales of the Byetta diabetes drug had overshadowed demand for other medicines and hit shares.

However, Amylin, which markets the drug alongside Lilly, commented that the “right steps” are being taken to protect the medication’s long-term growth and create a sustainable product.