Lilly drug yields about 30% weight loss; investors eye THNR ETF

Eli Lilly reported Thursday that its next-generation obesity drug produced just under 30% average weight loss in clinical trials when used as instructed. The company said the result was higher than outcomes seen with comparable GLP-1 treatments from Lilly and Novo Nordisk.

Dan Skovronsky, Lilly’s chief science and product officer, said he had not seen that level of weight loss before with these medicines. He described the results as notable for the category and gave no timeline for regulatory filings or commercial availability.

Lilly’s shares rose more than 3% over the past five trading days. The stock is down just over 4% year to date and up more than 37% over the past 12 months, according to YCharts data.

Investors seeking targeted exposure have increased flows into the Amplify Weight Loss Drug & Treatment ETF, ticker THNR. The fund tracks a market-cap-weighted index of companies involved in developing and manufacturing weight-loss medicines, including GLP-1 therapies. THNR charges a 59-basis-point expense ratio and holds about 70% of its portfolio in companies that actually manufacture drugs.

THNR’s managers focus on developed-market firms with weight-loss drugs on the market or in FDA trials. Lilly and Novo Nordisk are the ETF’s two largest holdings by weight. The ETF returned 12.8% over the past 12 months. VettaFi LLC receives an index licensing fee for the index THNR tracks and Amplify manages the ETF.

GLP-1 medicines were originally developed to treat type 2 diabetes and work by mimicking the GLP-1 hormone to reduce appetite and slow gastric emptying. The drug class has led to revenue growth for several pharmaceutical companies and prompted additional trials for next-generation molecules aimed at improving efficacy or reducing side effects.

Lilly’s disclosure did not include long-term safety or durability data beyond the reported weight-loss percentage, and full peer-reviewed results have not been published. Regulatory review and further trial outcomes will determine if and when any new product could reach the market.