Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading Up 4% – Should You Buy?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) was up 4% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $1,149.10 and last traded at $1,126.6560. Approximately 4,585,704 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 44% from the average daily volume of 3,194,030 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,082.92.

Trending Headlines about Eli Lilly and Company

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

• Positive Sentiment: CVS Caremark is restoring coverage for Zepbound and adding Foundayo to drug plans, meaning all three major PBMs now cover Lilly’s full obesity portfolio. That should expand access for millions of patients and strengthen Lilly’s market share versus Novo Nordisk. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Reuters also reported that Mounjaro outperformed other GLP-1 drugs in some type 2 diabetes patients, reinforcing Lilly’s competitive edge in the diabetes and obesity markets. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street is also reacting to Lilly’s broader pipeline momentum, including positive Phase 1b data for Verve-102 and progress in olomorasib, which supports the view that Lilly is more than just a weight-loss story. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Lilly announced a major push into vaccines, including the planned acquisition of Curevo Vaccine for $1.5 billion and other vaccine-developer deals, signaling a new long-term growth avenue outside cardiometabolic care. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and media coverage has been upbeat, with commentary highlighting Lilly’s “brilliant management,” record valuation, and strong pipeline, which can help sustain momentum in the stock. Article Title

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LLY shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Loop Capital set a $1,200.00 price objective on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Barclays increased their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,350.00 to $1,400.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $1,344.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,227.00.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $1.04 trillion, a P/E ratio of 39.27, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $955.92 and a 200-day moving average of $1,009.78. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $8.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.97 by $1.58. The business had revenue of $19.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.82 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 105.77% and a net margin of 34.98%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 55.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.34 EPS. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 35.500-37.000 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 35.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a $1.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 24.58%.

Institutional Trading of Eli Lilly and Company

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Cozad Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. Cozad Asset Management Inc. now owns 22,031 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,263,000 after purchasing an additional 452 shares in the last quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Allen Capital Group LLC now owns 1,918 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,764,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Security Financial Services INC. boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Security Financial Services INC. now owns 1,281 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,178,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 1st quarter valued at about $1,297,000. Finally, Summitry LLC raised its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 76.0% during the 1st quarter. Summitry LLC now owns 1,477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,358,000 after buying an additional 638 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

About Eli Lilly and Company

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) is a global pharmaceutical company founded in 1876 and headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes a broad range of medicines and therapies for patients worldwide. Eli Lilly maintains operations and commercial presence across North America, Europe, Asia and other regions, serving both developed and emerging markets. The company has been led in recent years by President and Chief Executive Officer David A.