Shares of pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co (NYSE:LLY) are on the rise today, up 3.7% at $720.07 at last check. The company's daily weight-loss pill, orforglipron, met its main goal in a late-stage trial, helping type 2 diabetes patients shed 10.5% of their body weight in 72 weeks. This was the last study needed for Eli Lilly to seek approval for the drug globally.
On the charts, LLY has been climbing since its August 8th 52-week low of $623.78, heading for its 10th gain in the last 12 sessions. The shares are still down 24.9% year over year and 7.5% year to date, however.
Options bulls are chiming in after the report, with 50,000 calls exchanged so far -- double the intraday average volume -- in comparison to 20,000 puts. The weekly 8/29 750-strike call is the most popular, followed by the 720-strike call in the same series, with new positions opening at both.
Calls have been more popular than usual over the last 10 weeks, too. LLY's 50-day call/put volume ratio of 1.67 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) ranks higher than 90% of readings from the past year.
