Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE:ELAN) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE:ELAN) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have assigned a hold recommendation, nine have assigned a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $28.5455.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup upped their target price on Elanco Animal Health from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Elanco Animal Health from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Weiss Ratings cut Elanco Animal Health from a “sell (d+)” rating to a “sell (d)” rating in a report on Monday, May 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Elanco Animal Health from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Elanco Animal Health in a research note on Monday, June 29th.

Insider Transactions at Elanco Animal Health

In related news, CEO Jeffrey N. Simmons purchased 4,971 shares of Elanco Animal Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.09 per share, with a total value of $99,867.39. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer directly owned 171,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,454,897.39. This represents a 2.98% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Rajeev A. Modi acquired 4,911 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 15th. The shares were bought at an average price of $20.35 per share, with a total value of $99,938.85. Following the acquisition, the insider directly owned 160,812 shares in the company, valued at $3,272,524.20. This represents a 3.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 1.14% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Elanco Animal Health

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Elanco Animal Health by 133.7% in the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Elanco Animal Health by 50.7% during the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the period. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in Elanco Animal Health during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. Torren Management LLC bought a new stake in Elanco Animal Health during the 4th quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in Elanco Animal Health by 33.2% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. 97.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Elanco Animal Health Price Performance

Elanco Animal Health stock opened at $25.18 on Tuesday. Elanco Animal Health has a 12-month low of $13.39 and a 12-month high of $27.72. The company has a current ratio of 2.16, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $23.70 and a 200-day moving average price of $23.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.57 billion, a PE ratio of -50.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.68.

Elanco Animal Health (NYSE:ELAN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.06. Elanco Animal Health had a negative net margin of 4.95% and a positive return on equity of 7.42%. The company had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.37 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 14.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Elanco Animal Health has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.250-0.285 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 1.030-1.090 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Elanco Animal Health will post 1.11 EPS for the current year.

Elanco Animal Health Company Profile

Elanco Animal Health Inc is a global leader in animal health dedicated to improving food and companion animal well-being. The company develops, manufactures and markets a range of products, including parasiticides, vaccines, antibiotics and feed additives designed to prevent and treat disease in livestock and pets. Elanco’s portfolio spans both food-producing animals—such as cattle, swine, poultry and aquaculture—and companion animals, with offerings that support parasite control, pain management and infectious disease prevention.

Originally founded as the animal health division of Eli Lilly and Company in the mid-20th century, Elanco was spun off into an independent publicly traded company in 2018.