Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Upgraded at Freedom Capital

Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also issued reports on LLY. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $1,260.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,286.00 to $1,268.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Truist Financial set a $1,281.00 price objective on Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,290.00 to $1,313.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,217.71.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LLY opened at $1,038.59 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $1,051.78 and its 200 day simple moving average is $904.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.55 and a quick ratio of 1.24. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1 year low of $623.78 and a 1 year high of $1,133.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $981.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.39.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $7.54 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.48 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $19.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.85 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 112.50% and a net margin of 31.66%.Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue was up 42.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $5.32 EPS. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 33.500-35.000 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.73 per share. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.14%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 22.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,597 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,409,000 after purchasing an additional 1,730 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,471 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,136,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. OneAscent Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 32.0% during the second quarter. OneAscent Wealth Management LLC now owns 359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 19.0% during the second quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 140,201 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,291,000 after purchasing an additional 22,410 shares during the period. Finally, Morris Financial Concepts Inc. raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.0% during the second quarter. Morris Financial Concepts Inc. now owns 2,238 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,745,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Eli Lilly and Company

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

• Positive Sentiment: Robust fundamentals and guidance — Lilly reported a strong Q4 beat and raised FY2026 outlook, underscoring surging GLP‑1/weight‑loss revenue and underpinning investor optimism. How to Play Eli Lilly Stock Following a Robust Q4 Earnings Report
• Positive Sentiment: Pre‑launch inventory build — Lilly filed that it has about $1.5 billion of pre‑launch inventory for its experimental oral weight‑loss pill, signaling management confidence in commercialization and readiness to capture market share if approved. Eli Lilly builds $1.5 billion stockpile of weight-loss pill ahead of FDA decision
• Positive Sentiment: M&A to expand pipeline — Lilly agreed to acquire Orna Therapeutics for up to $2.4B, adding an RNA platform that diversifies growth beyond GLP‑1s and supports longer‑term R&D optionality. Eli Lilly to acquire ‘world’s most innovative biotech startup’ for up to $2.4B
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades & institutional buying — recent upgrades (Freedom Capital to strong‑buy) and a stake increase by Fisher Asset Management reinforce buy‑side conviction. Zacks / analyst coverage
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry tailwinds from AI and biotech momentum — broader analyst pieces highlight AI drug‑discovery and biotech sector strength that could benefit Lilly longer term, but these are thematic rather than company‑specific catalysts. 2 Biotech Stocks to Buy as AI Drug Discovery Lifts Off
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary and price forecasts — multiple outlets publish bullish multi‑year forecasts and “reasons to buy” writeups; useful for sentiment but speculative for near‑term price moves. Stock Price Prediction and Forecast 2026-2030
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory binary risk — the April FDA decision on the oral weight‑loss pill is binary and could trigger significant volatility; the large pre‑launch build increases both upside on approval and downside on rejection or delays. Eli Lilly builds $1.5 billion stockpile of weight-loss pill ahead of FDA decision
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive dynamics — Novo Nordisk remains a dominant competitor in obesity drugs; market‑share battles, pricing pressure or faster rival launches could blunt Lilly’s growth trajectory. Eli Lilly vs Novo Nordisk in the Weight Loss Drug Market

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.