Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Hits New 1-Year High – Time to Buy?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $1,117.66 and last traded at $1,102.8590, with a volume of 1378439 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,064.04.

More Eli Lilly and Company News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Lilly is reported to be in advanced talks to acquire Ventyx Biosciences for more than $1 billion, a deal that would expand Lilly’s biotech pipeline and supports M&A-driven upside. Eli Lilly is in advanced talks to acquire Ventyx Biosciences for more than $1 billion, according to people familiar with the matter
• Positive Sentiment: Lilly signed a multiyear collaboration and exclusive licensing deal with Nimbus Therapeutics to develop an oral obesity/metabolic treatment (reported as a ~$1.3B deal), strengthening Lilly’s oral obesity pipeline beyond injectables. Eli Lilly, Nimbus Partner to Develop, License Oral Obesity Treatment
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple analyst pieces and momentum-focused writeups highlight Lilly’s fundamentals, growth runway (GLP‑1 leadership, obesity pipeline, AI-enabled R&D) and recent outperformance — supporting buy-side interest and upward price pressure. Eli Lilly’s Trifecta: Fundamentals, Undervaluation, And Momentum
• Neutral Sentiment: Lilly’s partners (e.g., Aktis) pursuing IPOs could unlock value or create near-term distractions depending on valuations and timing; watch equity-market moves and any spinoff/partner-related guidance. Lilly partner Aktis targets up to $840M valuation in US IPO
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal risk: the Indiana Attorney General filed suit alleging inflated insulin prices, which adds headline-driven litigation risk and potential reputational/regulatory costs. This is a direct negative that can pressure sentiment if it broadens. Indiana attorney general sues Eli Lilly over insulin pricing
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive risk: Novo Nordisk has begun selling a GLP‑1 obesity pill in the U.S., and market commentary shows investors are re-pricing some weight‑loss exposure as oral GLP‑1 competition emerges — a potential headwind for Lilly’s upcoming pill launch. Eli Lilly Stock (LLY) Falls 4% as Rival Novo Nordisk Begins Selling Obesity Pill in U.S.
• Negative Sentiment: Opinion pieces warning about valuation and “hidden risks” (competition, pricing scrutiny) can amplify volatility even if fundamentals remain strong — monitor guidance and pipeline readouts. Warning: This Skyrocketing Stock Has a Hidden Risk

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LLY. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $1,163.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Wednesday, December 3rd. HSBC reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $1,070.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,169.00.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day moving average is $1,022.32 and its 200-day moving average is $855.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The stock has a market cap of $1.04 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.99, a P/E/G ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.35.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $7.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.42 by $0.60. Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 30.99% and a return on equity of 109.52%. The firm had revenue of $17.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.18 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue was up 53.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2025 guidance at 23.000-23.700 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $1.73 per share. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.35%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 80,959,089 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,771,785,000 after acquiring an additional 551,659 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,726,558 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,496,364,000 after purchasing an additional 219,590 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 20.9% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 25,088,371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,141,787,000 after purchasing an additional 4,332,008 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 4.1% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,563,780 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,112,164,000 after purchasing an additional 574,229 shares during the period. Finally, Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 78,621.2% during the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,552,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,005,392,000 after purchasing an additional 11,537,661 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Company Profile

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.