Photo taken on March 5, 2021, at the Eli Lilly and Company pharmaceutical plant in Branchburg, New Jersey.
Fresh Mike | Reuters
American drug maker Eli Lilly and Company The company said on Monday it had named insider Lucas Montarce as its new chief, months after former Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi resigned to join the Google parent company. Chief Financial Officer, effective immediately letter.
The executive changes come at a critical time for Eli Lilly as it invests billions of dollars to expand manufacturing capabilities and meet growing demand for its diabetes and weight loss drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound.
Eli Lilly and its Danish rivals Novo Nordisk is a leader in the emerging weight-loss drug market, which some analysts predict could be worth more than $150 billion by the early 2030s.
The company’s shares rose 1% to $910 in premarket trading. The Indianapolis-based drugmaker has become the world’s most valuable health care company, largely due to high demand for its weight-loss treatments.
Montarce joined Eli Lilly and Company in 2001 and has held various financial leadership positions, including serving as treasurer of Eli Lilly Research Laboratories and Eli Lilly International.
Most recently, he served as president and general manager of Eli Lilly’s Spain, Portugal and Greece centers, a position he assumed earlier this year.
In his new role, Montas will serve as chief financial officer and executive vice president, with a base salary of $1 million and will be eligible for an annual target bonus of $1 million.
While both Eli Lilly and Novo are struggling to meet huge demand for obesity drugs, Eli Lilly recently increased production capacity and raised its annual sales forecast by $3 billion. Novo’s results missed expectations in its most recent quarter.
Although Eli Lilly’s drugs are now listed as available by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, they remain on the FDA’s official shortage list, where they have been for much of this year.
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