Eli Lilly stock jumped 2.8% after forecasting annual profit largely above Wall Street estimates on Thursday, banking on the launch of its popular diabetes and weight-loss treatments in new markets.

On an adjusted basis, the U.S. drugmaker expects to earn between $22.50 and $24.00 per share in 2025. Analysts were expecting a profit of $22.86 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG.

Lilly's Zepbound and Novo Nordisk's Wegovy dominate a market for weight-loss treatments that analysts estimate could be a $150 billion market by the early 2030s. Both the drugmakers have seen rapid growth in recent years, fueled by investor interest in their weight-loss and diabetes treatments.

Danish rival Novo on Wednesday forecast a slower growth this year compared to 2024, and said it saw "intact strong demand for obesity treatments" in the U.S. and elsewhere.

AstraZeneca shares rose 4% on Thursday after the drugmaker said it could face a fine of up to $4.5 million in China over suspected unpaid import taxes for two cancer drugs, reassuring analysts and investors that the business impact would be minor.

The company said that, to the best of its knowledge, the taxes related to the drugs Imfinzi and Imjudo, adding that it continued to cooperate with authorities.

A fine of between one and five times the unpaid tax of $900,000 could be levied if the company is found liable, AstraZeneca said in its fourth-quarter earnings statement, where it also forecast 2025 sales above analyst expectations.

Investors and analysts were on the lookout for an update on ongoing Chinese probes into the company's business there. China is the crown jewel of its international business, accounting for 12% of total sales in 2024.