Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Berenberg Bank

Key Points

• Berenberg upgraded Eli Lilly from “hold” to “strong buy,” joining a broadly positive analyst consensus of “moderate buy” with an average price target of $1,304.86.
• Lilly reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $8.38 per share versus the $6.40 consensus estimate and revenue of $22.97 billion, up 47.7% year over year.
• The stock opened at $1,136.82, giving Lilly a market capitalization of about $1.07 trillion; institutional investors own 82.53% of shares, while insiders have sold $15.96 million worth of stock over the past 90 days.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Berenberg Bank from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report released on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

LLY has been the topic of several other research reports. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,235.00 to $1,273.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. Wolfe Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,350.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, May 21st. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock a "reduce" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,500.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,280.00 to $1,330.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-four have issued a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,304.86.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $1,136.82 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $1,180.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $1,074.73. The stock has a market cap of $1.07 trillion, a PE ratio of 38.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12 month low of $712.05 and a 12 month high of $1,292.65.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $8.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.40 by $1.98. The firm had revenue of $22.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.82 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 97.83% and a net margin of 33.53%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 47.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.31 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 35.500-36.500 EPS. Research analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 36.53 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Patrik Jonsson sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,175.10, for a total value 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. This represents a 10.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,185.01, for a total transaction of $2,370,020.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 1,526 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,808,325.26. This trade represents a 56.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 have sold 13,500 shares of company stock worth $15,958,170 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LLY. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter valued at $12,976,634,000. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the second quarter worth $13,522,666,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the second quarter worth $4,667,180,000. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 321.3% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 1,963,490 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,805,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,497,423 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 353.7% in the first quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,550,234 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,425,859,000 after purchasing an additional 1,208,510 shares in the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eli Lilly and Company News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Berenberg upgraded Eli Lilly to Buy and set a $1,400 price target, implying roughly 25% upside. Analyst Kerry Holford cited the company’s potential to extend its lead in the rapidly expanding obesity-drug market and deliver upside to 2026 guidance. Berenberg bullish on Eli Lilly, sees nearly 25% upside
• Positive Sentiment: Foundayo is gaining traction quickly in the U.S. oral weight-loss market. Lilly said the newly launched medicine has captured more than 30% of new patients starting oral weight-loss treatments, narrowing Novo’s early lead with its Wegovy pill. The market-share progress could strengthen expectations for Foundayo’s commercial contribution. Lilly says Foundayo has captured over 30% of new U.S. patients
• Positive Sentiment: Upcoming clinical data could support Lilly’s pipeline valuation. At the EASD 2026 meeting, Lilly plans to present data on Foundayo, investigational retatrutide and eloraTZP. Retatrutide’s reported weight-loss and A1C improvements, along with Foundayo diabetes data, reinforce the company’s prospects beyond Mounjaro and Zepbound. Lilly to present new cardiometabolic data at EASD 2026
• Positive Sentiment: Lilly is expanding its research platform through a QurCan collaboration. The agreement includes a strategic investment and access to QurCan’s genetic-medicine delivery technology, potentially broadening Lilly’s neuroscience and nucleic-acid therapy pipeline. QurCan and Lilly research collaboration
• Neutral Sentiment: The main investment risk is execution: Lilly’s premium valuation and future growth expectations depend heavily on continued clinical success, manufacturing expansion and sustained demand for obesity treatments.
• Negative Sentiment: Competition from Novo remains intense, while reports of unapproved or bootleg versions of Lilly’s experimental medicines highlight regulatory and reputational risks. These issues could complicate market access and commercialization.

About Eli Lilly and Company

Eli Lilly and Company is a global pharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, manufactures and markets medicines for a range of medical conditions. Its portfolio includes treatments for diabetes and obesity, oncology, immunology, neuroscience, cardiovascular disease and other areas of significant unmet medical need.

The company's products include Mounjaro and Trulicity for diabetes, Zepbound for chronic weight management, and insulin products such as Humalog. Lilly also markets Verzenio for certain breast cancers and Kisunla for the treatment of early symptomatic Alzheimer's disease.

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