Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Stock Price Down 2% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) were down 2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $1,063.03 and last traded at $1,063.9030. Approximately 2,552,314 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 22% from the average daily volume of 3,266,747 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,085.19.

Key Stories Impacting Eli Lilly and Company

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

• Positive Sentiment: Lilly agreed to buy inflammation specialist Ventyx Biosciences for about $1.2B, expanding its small‑molecule oral inflammation pipeline (NLRP3 inhibitors) and signaling diversification beyond GLP‑1 obesity drugs. Eli Lilly to buy Ventyx Biosciences in $1.2 billion deal
• Positive Sentiment: Late‑stage data shows Zepbound (weight‑loss drug) combined with Taltz improved psoriatic arthritis symptoms and produced additional weight loss versus Taltz alone — a potential label/usage expansion that strengthens commercial upside for both franchises. Lilly’s Zepbound plus Taltz boosts arthritis relief, weight loss in late-stage trial
• Positive Sentiment: UBS initiated coverage with a Buy and raised its price target to $1,250, and other firms have reiterated Buy/Overweight ratings — analyst momentum that can support further upside. Here’s What UBS Thinks About Eli Lilly and Company (LLY)
• Positive Sentiment: Lilly is partnering across AI/drug‑design platforms (Chai Discovery collaboration; Schrodinger to offer Lilly’s TuneLab), which could accelerate discovery and productivity of future programs. Chai Discovery Announces Collaboration with Eli-Lilly Schrodinger to offer Eli Lilly’s AI drug discovery platform
• Positive Sentiment: Distribution tie‑ins: Walmart’s new health hub includes LillyDirect, broadening consumer access to Lilly’s DTC offerings. Walmart Launches Digital Destination Focused on Health and Wellness
• Neutral Sentiment: Market context at the JPMorgan Healthcare Conference could produce additional pipeline updates and M&A chatter that moves the stock, but those are anticipated rather than new. Healthy Returns: What to expect from pharma at the JPM conference
• Neutral Sentiment: Social‑media and retail chatter about obesity‑drug partnerships and acquisitions is amplifying sentiment; useful for momentum but noisy and not a substitute for fundamentals. Eli Lilly and Company Stock (LLY) Opinions on Obesity Drug Partnership and Acquisition Talks
• Negative Sentiment: Legal/transaction scrutiny: law firms have opened investigations into whether Ventyx shareholders received fair value in the deal — potential distractions and modest litigation risk around the acquisition. Ventyx Biosciences Investor Alert
• Negative Sentiment: Significant institutional/endowment and insider selling activity is highlighted in recent filings and data summaries — that can pressure near‑term price action as holders lock in gains. Eli Lilly and Company Stock (LLY) Opinions on Obesity Drug Partnership and Acquisition Talks

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on LLY shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 1st. National Bankshares set a $1,286.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Zacks Research upgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,100.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,169.00.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $1.01 trillion, a P/E ratio of 52.05, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.55. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $1,033.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $858.57.

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

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $1.73 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is currently 29.35%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 78,621.2% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 11,552,336 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,005,392,000 after acquiring an additional 11,537,661 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the second quarter valued at approximately $8,827,714,000. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 20.9% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 25,088,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,141,787,000 after acquiring an additional 4,332,008 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 80,407,430 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,680,004,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183,038 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 27.1% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 4,525,902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,823,977,000 after buying an additional 964,675 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.