Adds analyst comments in paragraphs 6-7, details on deal's potential closing in paragraph 10

By Puyaan Singh

Jan 7 (Reuters) - Eli Lilly LLY.N will buy autoimmune drug developer Ventyx Biosciences VTYX.O for $1.2 billion in cash, the companies said on Wednesday, marking the Zepbound maker's latest push to expand beyond its blockbuster diabetes and weight-loss drugs.

Ventyx is developing several treatments, including oral therapies for inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn's and ulcerative colitis, besides drugs for immunity-related, cardiometabolic and neurodegenerative disorders.

One of its drugs in a mid-stage trial is targeting a cardiovascular condition linked to obesity, potentially complementing Lilly's metabolic and immunology franchises.

Lilly will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Ventyx for $14 per share, representing a premium of around 2% over the stock's close on Wednesday.

Ventyx shares closed 28% higher in the day following media reports on the deal. The San Diego-based company's stock was little changed in extended trading.

The $1.2 billion price tag is borderline immaterial to Lilly, said Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Carter Gould.

"We like that Lilly is taking chances on potentially transformative opportunities at relatively small dollar amounts. Indeed, the program would sit nicely within Lilly's cardiometabolic franchise," Gould said.

This is Lilly's first major transaction of 2026, following a year when its market value topped $1 trillion on surging sales of GLP-1 drugs Mounjaro and Zepbound.

The diabetes and obesity drugs have delivered annual revenue that eclipsed traditional blockbusters and cemented Lilly's position as the world's most valuable drugmaker.

Its deal with Ventyx is expected to close in the first half of 2026.

(Reporting by Mrinalika Roy and Puyaan Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo, Tasim Zahid and Shilpi Majumdar)

((mrinalika.roy@thomsonreuters.com;))