Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Sets New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $1,453.00 and last traded at $1,438.59, with a volume of 913,698 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $1,417.99.

Key Headlines Impacting Eli Lilly and Company

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

• Positive Sentiment: Lilly plans to present new research at the American College of Rheumatology meeting. The company says Phase 3 retatrutide trials showed substantial improvements in knee pain and weight for people with knee osteoarthritis and obesity; Phase 3b data also found benefits from combining Taltz and Zepbound for people with psoriatic arthritis and obesity. The findings could support broader uses for its obesity medicines, though the presentations are upcoming. Lilly ACR research announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Lilly secured recommended advertising changes for a seller of compounded tirzepatide products after challenging health-benefit and personalization claims. This may help the company defend its branded franchise, although the decision does not eliminate competition from compounded drugs. National Advertising Division decision
• Neutral Sentiment: Lilly is among the investors in T-Therapeutics’ $133 million financing for early cancer and autoimmune therapies. The investment adds potential pipeline exposure, but the programs are still at an early stage. T-Therapeutics financing announcement
• Negative Sentiment: Recent investor commentary highlights increasing price competition across GLP-1 drugs, including pressure on realized prices. This could temper growth and margins if price reductions offset rising prescription volumes. GLP-1 franchise price competition

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on LLY shares. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,450.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Monday, October 26th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,600.00 to $1,650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Argus increased their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,300.00 to $1,550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,273.00 to $1,284.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,404.14.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,207.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $1,097.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company has a market capitalization of $1.30 trillion, a PE ratio of 44.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.40.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The company reported $7.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.71 by $1.77. The business had revenue of $24.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 was up 38.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $7.02 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 35.70 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.73 per share. This represents a $6.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.46%.

Insider Activity at Eli Lilly and Company

In related news, EVP Anat Hakim sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owned 4,137 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,802,225.24. This trade represents a 54.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 2,000 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,185.01, for a total transaction of $2,370,020.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 1,526 shares in the company, valued at $1,808,325.26. The trade was a 56.72% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 18,500 shares of company stock worth $22,970,770 in the last 90 days. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Torren Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 357.1% in the 3rd quarter. Torren Management LLC now owns 32 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 60.0% in the 1st quarter. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 40 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Foresight Capital Management Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter valued at approximately $49,000. AlphaCentric Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the first quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Caitlin John LLC bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 2nd quarter worth about $64,000. 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 that discovers, develops, manufactures and markets medicines for a range of medical conditions. Its major therapeutic areas include diabetes and obesity, oncology, immunology, neuroscience and cardiovascular health.

The company’s portfolio includes Mounjaro and Trulicity for diabetes, Zepbound for chronic weight management, Humalog insulin, Taltz for inflammatory diseases, Verzenio for certain breast cancers and Kisunla for early symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease.