Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Sets New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $1,453.00 and last traded at $1,438.59, with a volume of 913,698 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $1,417.99.

Eli Lilly and Company News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Eli Lilly and Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lilly and Hims & Hers agreed to offer FDA-approved Zepbound and Foundayo through Hims & Hers’ telehealth platform. Eligible patients with a prescription can access Lilly’s self-pay prices—reportedly starting at $149—without leaving the platform. The deal could widen patient access and Lilly’s reach in the competitive obesity-treatment market. Lilly and Hims & Hers expand access to FDA-approved Lilly medicines
• Positive Sentiment: New Phase 3 results for investigational retatrutide showed substantial reductions in weight and knee pain among adults with obesity and knee osteoarthritis. Lilly also reported positive Phase 3b results for combining Taltz and Zepbound in people with psoriatic arthritis and obesity, supporting the potential of its medicines in additional patient groups. Lilly to showcase new retatrutide, Taltz and Zepbound data
• Negative Sentiment: Price competition across the GLP-1 market remains a risk to Lilly’s growth and drug margins, as branded treatments compete with lower-priced options and providers seek self-pay patients. Eli Lilly’s GLP-1 franchise faces growing price competition

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on LLY shares. Argus lifted their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,300.00 to $1,550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. HSBC increased their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock a “reduce” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,500.00 to $1,650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $1,497.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,430.00 to $1,596.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,404.14.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.29 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 44.54, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $1,215.24 and a 200 day moving average of $1,101.16.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $7.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.71 by $1.77. The company had revenue of $24.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.58 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 86.76% and a net margin of 31.90%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 38.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $7.02 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 35.70 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.73 per share. This represents a $6.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is currently 22.46%.

Insider Activity

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, EVP Anat Hakim sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,402.52, for a total value of $7,012,600.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 4,137 shares in the company, valued at $5,802,225.24. The trade was a 54.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 2,000 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,185.01, for a total transaction of $2,370,020.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,526 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,808,325.26. The trade was a 56.72% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 13,500 shares of company stock valued at $17,020,770. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LLY. Coastal Bridge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the 2nd quarter worth $2,959,000. Birinyi Associates Inc. lifted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 32.6% during the 3rd quarter. Birinyi Associates Inc. now owns 1,460 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,689,000 after acquiring an additional 359 shares during the period. Mosaic Family Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 70.6% during the second quarter. Mosaic Family Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,455 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,144,000 after purchasing an additional 1,430 shares during the period. Heritage Investors Management Corp grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 6.5% in the 3rd quarter. Heritage Investors Management Corp now owns 11,774 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,624,000 after buying an additional 718 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Moran Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 85.6% in the 2nd quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,903 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,072,000 after buying an additional 9,638 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Eli Lilly and Company

Eli Lilly and Company is a global pharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, manufactures and markets medicines for people and animals. Its work spans areas including diabetes and obesity, cancer, immunology, neuroscience and pain management.

The company’s medicines include treatments for diabetes and obesity, such as Mounjaro and Zepbound, as well as products for cancer and other conditions. Lilly also conducts research into new medicines and invests in the development of treatments across its therapeutic areas.

Founded in Indianapolis in 1876 by Colonel Eli Lilly, the company is headquartered in the city and serves patients in markets around the world.