Eli Lilly and Co. (LLY) just delivered some genuinely interesting news from its TOGETHER-PsO Phase 3b trial, and it's the kind of result that makes you wonder why nobody tried this sooner. The pharmaceutical giant announced Wednesday that combining two of its blockbuster drugs—Taltz for psoriasis and Zepbound for weight loss—works significantly better than using Taltz alone for patients dealing with both conditions.
Here's what happened: In this open-label trial, researchers tested whether patients with plaque psoriasis and obesity would benefit from taking both medications simultaneously instead of just treating their skin condition. Turns out, they definitely did.
The Results That Matter
The numbers tell a compelling story. Among participants receiving both Taltz (ixekizumab) and Zepbound (tirzepatide), 27.1% achieved what researchers call the holy grail outcome—complete skin clearance (measured as PASI 100 on the Psoriasis Area Severity Index) plus at least 10% weight loss. Compare that to the measly 5.8% who hit both targets with Taltz alone, and you've got yourself a statistically significant win that met the trial's primary endpoint.
But wait, there's more. Even if you just look at skin clearance by itself, the combination therapy delivered a 40% relative increase over Taltz monotherapy. Specifically, 40.6% of patients on the dual treatment achieved complete skin clearance versus 29% on Taltz alone. That's not a marginal improvement—that's the kind of difference patients actually notice.
What About Side Effects?
No drug comes without trade-offs, and this combination is no exception. The most common adverse events in the Taltz plus Zepbound group included nausea, diarrhea, constipation, injection site reactions, dosing errors, vomiting, and dizziness. Meanwhile, patients taking only Taltz most frequently reported injection site reactions, dosing errors, and nasopharyngitis. The GI side effects in the combo group aren't surprising given that Zepbound is a GLP-1 receptor agonist, and that drug class is notorious for digestive complaints.
A Strategic Licensing Deal
In separate but related news, CSL Limited (CSLLY)—an Australian biopharmaceutical company—announced Wednesday it's entered an exclusive licensing agreement with Eli Lilly for clazakizumab, a drug targeting kidney disease and cardiovascular complications.
Under the terms, CSL receives $100 million upfront and becomes eligible for additional clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestone payments, plus royalties on global net sales. CSL will keep exclusive rights to develop and commercialize clazakizumab specifically for preventing cardiovascular events in patients with end-stage kidney disease (ESKD), and they're currently advancing the POSIBIL 6ESKD Phase 3 trial. Lilly, meanwhile, gets to explore developing the drug for other indications and handling global regulatory approval and commercialization beyond ESKD.
Technical Picture and Market Positioning
From a technical standpoint, Lilly's stock is showing some mixed signals. Shares are trading 2.7% below the 20-day simple moving average and 3.2% below the 50-day SMA, suggesting near-term weakness. But zoom out a bit, and the stock remains 4.3% above its 100-day SMA and 17.6% above its 200-day SMA—signs of longer-term strength.
The Relative Strength Index sits at 48.22, which is neutral territory, meaning the stock isn't particularly overbought or oversold right now. The MACD tells a slightly different story, with a value of -5.0984 sitting below its signal line of -3.9365, indicating some bearish pressure. Put it all together, and you've got mixed momentum that suggests caution rather than conviction in either direction.
Key levels to watch: resistance at $1,088.50 and support at $1,012.50.
What the Analysts Think
Wall Street analysts remain optimistic about Eli Lilly, maintaining a Buy rating with an average price target of $1,141.70. Recent moves include Deutsche Bank setting a Buy rating with a $1,285 target on February 9, JP Morgan maintaining Overweight with a $1,300 target on February 5, and Cantor Fitzgerald also rating it Overweight with a $1,205 target on February 5.
The Scorecard
Looking at fundamental metrics, Lilly presents an interesting profile. The Value Rank comes in at just 3.49, meaning the stock is trading at a significant premium relative to peers—not exactly a bargain. But the Quality Rank of 90.9 reflects a healthy balance sheet, and the Momentum Rank of 84.91 shows the stock outperforming the broader market.
The takeaway? Lilly has strong momentum and solid fundamentals, but you're paying up for that quality. The low value score means investors should think carefully about whether the premium valuation is justified given the growth prospects.
Eli Lilly shares were down 1.62% at $1,019.22 at the time of publication Wednesday.
