Half of the year is over! So, which pharmaceutical giant outpaces the others? Sharp investors wonder whose market capitalization has risen farthest? Whose revenue and profit is up the most?

Let’s start with the usual suspects: Eli Lilly, Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie and NovoNordisk outrank the others by market capitalization.

The COVID-19 crisis allowed several corporations to excel mightily. The long term pattern in the market cap of these giants is quite telling. Let’s keep our focus on the last six months. Three of these behemoths have improved their market capitalization; one is going through a sharp fall.

Eli Lilly LLY advocates can point out that the company’s value is amazing and that the +3.8% is huge given the high starting point. Johnson & Johnson JNJ rolls along boosting its value. AbbVie ABBV is also doing well.

NovoNordisk NVO is slipping. The market cap history of the creator of Ozempic looks like a peak and valley. In terms of market cap growth, it is heading for the bottom of a valley.

The Eli Lilly surge relates to a topic covered by us in a recent entry: the wide use of weight loss products. We should note: these weight loss superstars really work. The company’s massive market value indicates that weight loss success will be important for a long time.

Johnson & Johnson always finds a way to raise its value. Recently, the company announced a multiyear plan to expand research and other key areas. Obviously, investors appreciate the wise strategy.

Wilson, N.C. also appreciates it. The city is in line for a $2 billion investment from J&J, which announced last year it would build a biologics manufacturing facility there as the company  keeps moving ahead with efforts across the pharmaceutical board spanning oncology, immunology and cardiovascular disease as well as neuroscience breakthroughs and robotic surgery.

AbbVie’s latest advances include the acquisition of Nimble Therapeutics, a company which excels in oral therapies, a concept AbbVie sees as expanding their ability to reach people who suffer from autoimmune diseases.

The three giants whose market caps are rising have all made interesting strategic moves. Investors value smart action that makes the organization more competitive, especially in financially attractive areas.

The pharmaceutical market-cap loser

NovoNordisk, while still enjoying its status as Europe’s most valuable company, is watching its market value shrink because its weight loss champions, including Wegovy, may be slipping against Eli Lilly’s Zepbound. The sheer level of competition in weight loss is drawing new competitors with strong products that will likely cut into NovoNordisk’s lead.

Also worthy of note is Roche RHHBY . While its market capitalization has fallen from a high point a few years ago, it has gained nearly $50 billion this year largely thanks to its work in cardiovascular disease, a critical area.

Lunsumio, manufactured by Genentech, part of the Roche family, in combination with Polivy, also made by Genentech, reports a big improvement in progression-free survival and objective response rate compared to MabThera/Rituxan (rituximab), gemcitabine and oxaliplatin (R-GemOx), in patients suffering from lymphoma. Becoming best in class proves to be a significant factor in pumping up market capitalization.

Weight loss, oncology, cardiovascular, immunology and significant breakthroughs remain the hot areas for the industry giants. The industry continues to roll out new products, but rising corporate value comes from success in the most significant areas of patient need.

This industry has seen spectacular success in amazing solutions to big problems in wealthy countries. The battle to stay ahead rests largely on smart strategic thinking.

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