Patients on the new pill also lost weight — up to 16 pounds without reaching a plateau at the study’s end. Side effects were the same as those with the injectable obesity drugs.

Eli Lilly's experimental pill worked as well as blockbuster drug Ozempic to lower weight and blood sugar in a trial of diabetes patients, and the company said it expects to seek regulatory approvals by the end of the year.

Eli Lilly stock soared as much as 17% on Thursday to $858. Shares are now positive for the year, up 10% since the start of January. They were down roughly 5% coming into the session. Why: The gains came after Eli Lilly announced positive phase-three trial data for orforglipron,