Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Up 1.4% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Eli Lilly's share price increased by 1.4%, trading at $724.73 after hitting a high of $729.00, despite a decline in trading volume compared to the average session.
• Research firms have shifted their ratings for Eli Lilly, with Erste Group downgrading it to "hold" and UBS lowering its price target significantly from $1,050 to $895.
• The company reported strong quarterly earnings of $6.31 EPS, surpassing estimates and reflecting a 37.6% year-over-year revenue increase to $15.56 billion.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report)'s share price shot up 1.4% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $729.00 and last traded at $724.73. 3,552,702 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 13% from the average session volume of 4,083,766 shares. The stock had previously closed at $714.59.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently issued reports on LLY. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,050.00 to $895.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Daiwa America downgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Sunday, August 17th. Berenberg Bank reissued a "hold" rating and set a $830.00 price objective (down from $970.00) on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Leerink Partners reissued a "market perform" rating and set a $715.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $939.61.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

The company's fifty day moving average price is $735.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $767.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $685.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.03 and a beta of 0.47.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $6.31 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.59 by $0.72. Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 25.91% and a return on equity of 92.72%. The business had revenue of $15.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $14.40 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.92 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 37.6% on a year-over-year basis. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2025 guidance at 21.750-23.000 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Eli Lilly and Company

In other news, Director J Erik Fyrwald bought 1,565 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $642.33 per share, for a total transaction of $1,005,246.45. Following the transaction, the director owned 74,578 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,903,686.74. This trade represents a 2.14% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO David A. Ricks purchased 1,632 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $644.77 per share, for a total transaction of $1,052,264.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 546,601 shares in the company, valued at $352,431,926.77. This represents a 0.30% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have purchased 4,514 shares of company stock worth $2,894,841 in the last quarter. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Eli Lilly and Company

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. WestEnd Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 210.0% during the first quarter. WestEnd Advisors LLC now owns 31 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Wealth Preservation Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Companies Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Eli Lilly and Company

Eli Lilly and Company discovers, develops, and markets human pharmaceuticals worldwide. The company offers Basaglar, Humalog, Humalog Mix 75/25, Humalog U-100, Humalog U-200, Humalog Mix 50/50, insulin lispro, insulin lispro protamine, insulin lispro mix 75/25, Humulin, Humulin 70/30, Humulin N, Humulin R, and Humulin U-500 for diabetes; Jardiance, Mounjaro, and Trulicity for type 2 diabetes; and Zepbound for obesity.

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