Elanco Animal Health (NYSE:ELAN) Hits New 1-Year High Following Strong Earnings

Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE:ELAN)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $27.92 and last traded at $27.33, with a volume of 858714 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $25.60.

The company reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $1.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.31 billion. Elanco Animal Health had a negative net margin of 4.95% and a positive return on equity of 7.42%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.26 EPS. Elanco Animal Health has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.190-0.220 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 1.100-1.160 EPS.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ELAN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Elanco Animal Health from $31.00 to $32.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Elanco Animal Health from $23.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Elanco Animal Health in a research note on Monday, June 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Elanco Animal Health from $28.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Elanco Animal Health from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, May 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Elanco Animal Health has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $28.73.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Elanco Animal Health

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ELAN. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Elanco Animal Health by 133.7% during the fourth quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,096 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 627 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Elanco Animal Health by 50.7% in the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Elanco Animal Health during the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Torren Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Elanco Animal Health during the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Elanco Animal Health by 33.2% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 525 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.48% of the company’s stock.

Elanco Animal Health Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 2.16 and a quick ratio of 1.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.81 billion, a PE ratio of -55.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.68 and a beta of 1.67. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $24.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $24.09.

About Elanco Animal Health

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.