Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Rating Lowered to Hold at China Merchants Securities

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) was downgraded by research analysts at China Merchants Securities from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Thursday, FinViz reports.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,500.00 to $1,600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 30th. Berenberg Bank upgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $1,400.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,300.00 to $1,605.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,500.00 to $1,650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,440.00 to $1,600.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,416.64.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

LLY stock opened at $1,444.05 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $1,242.25 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1,110.30. The firm has a market cap of $1.36 trillion, a P/E ratio of 46.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.39. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1 year low of $850.51 and a 1 year high of $1,460.00.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $7.48 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.71 by $1.77. The company had revenue of $24.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.58 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 31.90% and a return on equity of 86.76%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 38.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $7.02 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 35.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Eli Lilly and Company

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, EVP Patrik Jonsson sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,175.10, for a total transaction of $7,638,150.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 54,147 shares in the company, valued at approximately $63,628,139.70. The trade was a 10.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Anat Hakim sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,402.52, for a total transaction of $7,012,600.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 4,137 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,802,225.24. This represents a 54.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. BlackRock Inc. grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 67,540,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,009,981,000 after acquiring an additional 1,046,558 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 36,848,565 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,636,738,000 after purchasing an additional 632,811 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the second quarter valued at approximately $13,522,666,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.9% during the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 7,209,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,647,153,000 after purchasing an additional 137,364 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 7.9% in the 2nd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 5,461,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,550,587,000 after buying an additional 400,538 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eli Lilly and Company News Summary

Here’s some of the latest news about LLY:

• Positive Sentiment: China approved Lilly’s oral weight-loss drug orforglipron, marketed as Foundayo. As the first GLP-1 weight-loss pill approved in China, it gives Lilly an early foothold in a large market and could broaden access beyond injectable treatments; competition from other drugmakers remains a factor. Reuters: China approves Eli Lilly’s weight loss pill orforglipron
• Positive Sentiment: Lilly broke ground on a $3.5 billion Pennsylvania manufacturing facility intended to make next-generation obesity medicines, including investigational retatrutide. The project supports the company’s broader production expansion, although the site is not expected to begin operations until 2031. Lilly announces Pennsylvania manufacturing facility
• Positive Sentiment: Hims & Hers will offer Lilly’s FDA-approved Zepbound and Foundayo, potentially extending patient reach through another care platform. Separately, exchange-traded funds were reported to have added to their Lilly holdings, signaling investor demand. Hims partners with Lilly to offer weight-loss drugs

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.