Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Stock Price Up 3.6% Following Analyst Upgrade

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)’s stock price rose 3.6% during trading on Friday after Leerink Partners raised their price target on the stock from $1,234.00 to $1,296.00. Leerink Partners currently has an outperform rating on the stock. Eli Lilly and Company traded as high as $1,060.02 and last traded at $1,057.10. Approximately 4,432,040 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 30% from the average daily volume of 3,415,783 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,020.84.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on LLY. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,200.00 to $1,280.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Guggenheim cut their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,163.00 to $1,161.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Zacks Research downgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $960.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,203.75.

Eli Lilly and Company News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and stunning 2026 guidance — Lilly reported strong Q4 revenue and EPS and issued 2026 guidance well above Street expectations, which sparked the initial rally as investors priced in sustained GLP‑1 growth and margin leverage. Eli Lilly Booms, Then Busts: Stellar Guidance vs Hims Undercut
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raising price targets — Multiple banks (JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, Cantor Fitzgerald) lifted LLY price targets and kept overweight/positive views after the results, supporting upside expectations. Price Target Raised to $1,300.00 at JPMorgan Chase & Co. Price Target Raised to $1,313.00 at Morgan Stanley Price Target Raised to $1,205.00 at Cantor Fitzgerald
• Positive Sentiment: Manufacturing and capacity expansion — Lilly is expanding GLP‑1 capacity and building greenfield sites to meet volume demand, which investors view as a durable competitive advantage versus peers constrained by supply. Eli Lilly Expands GLP-1 Capacity While Building Beyond Obesity And Diabetes
• Neutral Sentiment: Obesity market size and longer‑term thesis — Coverage highlights a very large addressable market (approaching ~$100B for obesity drugs), reinforcing the long‑term growth story even as short‑term skirmishes play out. Eli Lilly vs Novo Nordisk: The 1 Figure Investors Shouldn’t Ignore
• Neutral Sentiment: Fund/score coverage — Research pieces (Zacks, institutional letters) reinforce Lilly’s growth ranking and investor interest, but are confirmatory rather than catalytic. Eli Lilly (LLY) is a Top-Ranked Growth Stock: Should You Buy?
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive pricing pressure from compounded copies — Hims & Hers launching low‑cost compounded semaglutide pills ($49 introductory) triggered a selloff as investors feared erosion of pricing/patient share for branded oral options. This remains the main short‑term risk to LLY’s oral launch economics. Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly fall after Hims & Hers announce $49 copy of Wegovy pill
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal noise — Separately, securities‑law firms have flagged investigations into certain transactions and board conduct; these are reputational/legal items to monitor but not yet material to the core GLP‑1 thesis. Investor Alert: Scott+Scott Investigates Directors and Officers

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 9,597 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,409,000 after purchasing an additional 1,730 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,471 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,136,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. OneAscent Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 32.0% in the 2nd quarter. OneAscent Wealth Management LLC now owns 359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $280,000 after buying an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Coordinated Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the second quarter worth approximately $227,000. Finally, Cardano Risk Management B.V. increased its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 5.2% in the second quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 236,517 shares of the company’s stock worth $184,372,000 after buying an additional 11,763 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. The stock has a market cap of $999.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $1,052.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $899.06.

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

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 30.15%.

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.