New York, January 6, 2026, 18:18 EST — After-hours
- Eli Lilly shares closed up about 2% and were slightly higher in after-hours trading
- Nimbus said the obesity-pill collaboration could bring up to $1.3 billion in milestone payments
- A report said Lilly is in advanced talks to buy Ventyx for more than $1 billion
Eli Lilly and Company stock closed up 2.2% on Tuesday and was up about 0.1% in after-hours trading after Nimbus Therapeutics said it struck a research and licensing deal with the drugmaker to pursue an oral obesity treatment.
The news lands as investors look for the next leg of growth in obesity care, where convenience matters and pill options could widen uptake beyond weekly injections. Industry forecasts have pegged the obesity-drug market at more than $150 billion a year by the early 2030s, and drugmakers are racing to develop oral alternatives to Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Lilly’s Zepbound.
Deals that lean on drug discovery — and potential bolt-on acquisitions — are also a signal that Lilly wants to keep its pipeline stocked as competition tightens and payers push back on pricing. Milestone-heavy structures can limit upfront cash outlay, but they also put more of the payout on whether a program advances.
Nimbus said the collaboration expands a prior partnership with Lilly and targets an early-stage small-molecule program for obesity and other metabolic diseases. Lilly’s Ruth Gimeno, group vice president for diabetes and metabolic research and development, said the work would be “an important addition” to Lilly’s efforts in metabolic disorders, while Nimbus R&D chief Peter J. Tummino said the group’s AI-driven models and structure-based design have helped it “consistently deliver optimized clinical candidates.” Business Wire
Under the agreement, Nimbus is eligible to receive $55 million in upfront and near-term payments, plus up to about $1.3 billion tied to development, commercial and sales milestones — payments triggered when preset targets are met — and tiered royalties if a product reaches the market.
Separately, the Wall Street Journal reported Lilly is in advanced talks to buy Ventyx Biosciences for more than $1 billion, a move that would add inflammatory bowel disease candidates to Lilly’s pipeline. Lilly told Reuters it does not “comment on business development activity,” and the report said a deal could be announced imminently. Reuters
A regulatory filing also showed Lilly Endowment Inc, a 10% owner, sold 1,390 Lilly shares on Jan. 5 at a weighted average price of $1,085.011, leaving it with about 92.19 million shares.
But investors are likely to treat the Ventyx discussions as tentative until there is confirmation, and the Nimbus collaboration is early-stage, where most programs never reach approval. Any stumble in trial execution, tighter reimbursement, or faster progress by rivals in oral obesity drugs could dampen expectations.
Next up, traders will parse Lilly’s quarterly update for pipeline and demand signals when the company holds its fourth-quarter 2025 earnings call on Feb. 4, with any update on business development high on the list.
