--- title: "Lilly's obesity pill wins EU backing after Novo's; its ex-US sales rose 80% on prices down 36%" description: "EU regulators recommended Eli Lilly's obesity pill Foundayo, the second after Novo Nordisk's Wegovy pill, setting up the first market where both will sell. Both report Q3 within three weeks, and the filings say Lilly arrives with a price-for-volume machine." publisher: "The Inference" section: "Health" published: 2026-10-16T17:28:46.842Z modified: 2026-10-16T17:28:46.842Z canonical: https://theinference.org/article/lilly-s-obesity-pill-wins-eu-backing-after-novo-s-its-ex-us-sales-rose-80-on-prices-down-36 language: en keywords: "Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, Obesity, GLP-1" --- # Lilly's obesity pill wins EU backing after Novo's; its ex-US sales rose 80% on prices down 36% > EU regulators recommended Eli Lilly's obesity pill Foundayo, the second after Novo Nordisk's Wegovy pill, setting up the first market where both will sell. Both report Q3 within three weeks, and the filings say Lilly arrives with a price-for-volume machine. Europe's drug regulators have recommended [Eli Lilly](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/eli-lilly)'s [once-daily pill Foundayo for weight management and type 2 diabetes](https://www.ksl.com/article/51637170/eli-lillys-weight-loss-pill-wins-eu-drug-regulators-backing), the second oral weight-loss drug to win their backing after [Novo Nordisk](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/novo-nordisk)'s Wegovy pill [1]. The European Commission, which has the final word, usually follows its committee within weeks [2]. Novo's pill has held Europe alone since [its approval on July 15](https://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2026-07/69038534-novo-nordisk-a-s-novo-nordisk-receives-european-commission-approval-of-wegovy-pill-as-first-oral-glp-1-for-weight-management-in-the-eu-single-ready-399.htm); Lilly's, cleared in the United States in April, booked its first $98 million of sales last quarter [3][4][5]. Both companies chase a market expected to pass $100 billion a year by 2030 [1]. ## Lilly buys growth with price [The second-quarter filings](https://dataporium.tech/articles/eli-lilly-novo-nordisk-q2-2026-weight-loss-drugs) show the weapon Lilly brings. Revenue rose 48% to $23.0 billion: volume up 60%, realized price down 13% [4]. Outside the United States, revenue rose 80% to $8.6 billion while prices fell 36%, [the same trade that grew the diabetes injection Mounjaro 91%](https://theinference.org/article/lilly-says-india-already-ran-the-glp-1-price-war-and-mounjaro-grew-anyway) [4]. Novo's quarter ran the other way: sales up 3% at constant exchange rates, 7% adjusted, its US operations down 2%, and a full-year guide that lets adjusted sales fall as much as 6% [4]. *Chart: **From near-parity to an $11 billion quarterly gap in eight quarters** Column chart of quarterly revenue for Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk from Q3 2024 to Q2 2026 in US dollars, showing Lilly pulling from near-parity to a roughly $11 billion quarterly gap.* *Quarterly revenue in US dollars, from each company's SEC filings. Novo Nordisk reports in Danish kroner; its dollar figures carry currency swings, and its reported Q2 2026 sales grew 3% at constant exchange rates. [7][8]* ## Novo's lead is real, and already in the price The Wegovy pill is ahead: roughly $850 million of worldwide sales in the first half against Foundayo's $98 million, [more than 5 million US prescriptions since launch](https://theinference.org/article/novo-s-pill-keeps-winning-switchers-while-the-payers-behind-its-volume-math-walk-out), and over 80% of new US oral prescriptions [2][4]. In diabetes, Foundayo also meets Rybelsus, Novo's $3 billion oral, and it can be taken any time of day where Novo's pills require fasting [2]. [A Lilly-run indirect comparison presented on September 29](https://www.marketscreener.com/news/eli-lilly-and-company-announces-foundayo-orforglipron-17-2-mg-results-showing-greater-weight-loss-ce785addda89f620) found the 17.2 mg pill beat oral semaglutide 25 mg on both weight loss and blood-sugar reduction [9]. Novo's US-listed shares have fallen 25.5% this year while Lilly's rose 7.7%, so the tape already leans Lilly's way [4]. No source yet carries European prescription data for either pill. ## Two prints, three weeks apart Lilly [reports third-quarter results on October 29](https://investor.lilly.com/news-releases/news-release-details/lilly-confirms-date-and-conference-call-third-quarter-2026) [6]; Novo follows on November 4 [4]. Foundayo's second quarter of sales, and Lilly's ex-US realized prices, will show whether Europe repeats the injectables story. Novo's one-quarter head start is about to meet the company that grew ex-US revenue 80% while cutting prices 36% [4]. ## Takeaway Europe becomes the first market where both oral GLP-1 pills compete: Novo's Wegovy pill has had it alone since July 15, but Lilly arrives with a Q2 filing showing ex-US revenue up 80% on prices down 36%, and both report Q3 within three weeks. ## Sources 1. [KSL News, Eli Lilly's weight-loss pill wins EU drug regulator's backing, 16 October 2026](https://www.ksl.com/article/51637170/eli-lillys-weight-loss-pill-wins-eu-drug-regulators-backing) 2. [pharmaphorum, CHMP backs Lilly's oral GLP-1 Foundayo for EU approval, 16 October 2026](https://pharmaphorum.com/news/chmp-backs-lillys-oral-glp-1-foundayo-eu-approval) 3. [Novo Nordisk via GlobeNewswire/Finanznachrichten, Novo Nordisk receives European Commission approval of Wegovy pill as first oral GLP-1 for weight management in the EU, 15 July 2026](https://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2026-07/69038534-novo-nordisk-a-s-novo-nordisk-receives-european-commission-approval-of-wegovy-pill-as-first-oral-glp-1-for-weight-management-in-the-eu-single-ready-399.htm) 4. [DataPorium, Lilly vs Novo in 2026: Weight-Loss Drug Sales After Q2, 16 October 2026 (summarising Lilly Form 8-K of 5 August 2026 and Novo Nordisk Form 6-K of 4 August 2026)](https://dataporium.tech/articles/eli-lilly-novo-nordisk-q2-2026-weight-loss-drugs) 5. [Forbes, GLP-1s Took Eli Lilly To $1 Trillion. CEO Dave Ricks Is Betting Billions He Can Do It Again, October 2026](https://forbesliberia.com/article?slug=glp-1s-took-eli-lilly-to-1-trillion-ceo-dave-ricks-is-betting-billions-he-can-do-it-again) 6. [Eli Lilly investor relations, Lilly confirms date and conference call for third-quarter 2026 financial results announcement, 15 October 2026](https://investor.lilly.com/news-releases/news-release-details/lilly-confirms-date-and-conference-call-third-quarter-2026) 7. [Eli Lilly quarterly figures from its SEC filings, retrieved 16 October 2026](https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0000059478) 8. [Novo Nordisk quarterly figures from its SEC filings, retrieved 16 October 2026](https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&CIK=0000353278) 9. [Eli Lilly via MarketScreener/S&P Capital IQ, Foundayo (orforglipron) 17.2 mg results showing greater weight loss and A1C reduction than oral semaglutide 25 mg among adults with type 2 diabetes, 29 September 2026](https://www.marketscreener.com/news/eli-lilly-and-company-announces-foundayo-orforglipron-17-2-mg-results-showing-greater-weight-loss-ce785addda89f620) --- Lilly's obesity pill wins EU backing after Novo's; its ex-US sales rose 80% on prices down 36% — The Inference. Canonical: https://theinference.org/article/lilly-s-obesity-pill-wins-eu-backing-after-novo-s-its-ex-us-sales-rose-80-on-prices-down-36