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STORY: Eli Lilly rose its annual forecast by $3 billion on Thursday (August 8).

That’s after it ramped up manufacturing capacity for its blockbuster weight-loss drug Zepbound.

This sunny outlook sent shares up to heights of 13% in early trading.

The drugmaker was on track to add nearly $100 billion in market value if the gains hold track through the day.

Lilly is already the world’s most valuable healthcare company, largely due to its demand for obesity treatments.

It has hiked its 2024 revenue forecast to between $45.4 billion and $46.6 billion.

It said the sales of the sought-after Zepbound crossed $1 billion for the first time in a quarter since its launch late last year.

This milestone comes a day after Danish rival Novo Nordisk reported a rare miss on quarterly sales of its popular weight-loss drug Wegovy.

It also trimmed its full-year profit forecast.

Lilly and Novo are racing to meet unprecedented demand for their popular drugs.

They have been shown to help patients lose as much as 20% of their weight on average.

As Lilly's supply for Zepbound and drug Mounjaro - which has the same active ingredient - increased during the quarter, the company said it was able to backfill orders and increase stocks at wholesalers.

They expect the drugs to make a combined $15 billion this year.