Elanco Animal Health (NYSE:ELAN) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE:ELAN) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $25.39 and last traded at $24.87, with a volume of 3439993 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $24.40.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on ELAN. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Elanco Animal Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Elanco Animal Health from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $24.00 to $30.00 in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays assumed coverage on shares of Elanco Animal Health in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $30.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Elanco Animal Health in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Argus raised shares of Elanco Animal Health from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $25.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $25.44.

Elanco Animal Health Trading Up 3.9%

The firm has a market capitalization of $12.55 billion, a PE ratio of 420.90, a PEG ratio of 3.63 and a beta of 1.87. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $23.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $20.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 2.40 and a quick ratio of 1.23.

Elanco Animal Health (NYSE:ELAN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $0.19 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.06. Elanco Animal Health had a net margin of 0.78% and a return on equity of 7.41%. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.13 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Elanco Animal Health Incorporated will post 0.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Rajeev A. Modi purchased 4,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $21.33 per share, with a total value of $95,985.00. Following the acquisition, the insider owned 123,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,625,339.06. This represents a 3.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffrey N. Simmons purchased 22,000 shares of Elanco Animal Health stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $21.75 per share, with a total value of $478,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 167,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,632,250. This trade represents a 15.17% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders purchased 43,450 shares of company stock valued at $937,883. Insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Elanco Animal Health

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in ELAN. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in Elanco Animal Health by 434.2% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 126,334 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,801,000 after acquiring an additional 102,686 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Elanco Animal Health in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $12,502,000. Amalgamated Bank boosted its stake in shares of Elanco Animal Health by 793.7% in the 3rd quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 226,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,563,000 after purchasing an additional 201,226 shares in the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance boosted its stake in shares of Elanco Animal Health by 364.5% in the 3rd quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 98,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,974,000 after purchasing an additional 76,920 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp bought a new position in shares of Elanco Animal Health during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,444,000. 97.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.