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

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) were up 4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company 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.

Key Stories Impacting 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 Lilly’s new obesity pill Foundayo to standard drug plans, meaning all three major PBMs now cover Lilly’s full obesity portfolio. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Lilly said the expanded PBM coverage could make its obesity medicines accessible to millions more patients and support lower out-of-pocket costs, which is a positive for demand and market share. PR Newswire article
• Positive Sentiment: The company also unveiled strong late-stage data for Foundayo and retatrutide ahead of the ADA conference, reinforcing confidence in Lilly’s obesity and diabetes pipeline. PR Newswire article
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts reiterated bullish views, with some raising price targets and calling Lilly a strong long-term growth story, which can add to investor optimism. InsiderMonkey article

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on LLY shares. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,300.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,300.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $960.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $1,283.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,227.00.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $1.06 trillion, a P/E ratio of 40.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 0.48. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $948.23 and its 200-day moving average price is $1,007.67.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $8.55 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.97 by $1.58. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 105.77% and a net margin of 34.98%.The company had revenue of $19.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.34 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 55.5% on a year-over-year basis. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 35.500-37.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 35.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Announces Dividend

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

Institutional Trading of Eli Lilly and Company

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LLY. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,597 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,409,000 after acquiring an additional 1,730 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,471 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,136,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 16.7% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 7,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,231,000 after acquiring an additional 1,141 shares in the last quarter. Flow Traders U.S. LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 2nd quarter valued at about $356,000. Finally, Nebula Research & Development LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 2nd quarter valued at about $749,000. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.