Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading Down 2% – Time to Sell?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)’s stock price traded down 2% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $1,070.15 and last traded at $1,086.2750. 3,127,542 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 8% from the average session volume of 3,404,246 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,108.09.

Eli Lilly and Company News Summary

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LLY. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Monday, December 22nd. National Bankshares set a $1,286.00 price target on Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Monday, December 1st. 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,100.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $1,169.00.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $1,037.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $860.61. The company has a market capitalization of $1.01 trillion, a PE ratio of 52.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 0.35. 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 (NYSE:LLY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $7.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.42 by $0.60. The business had revenue of $17.60 billion during 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 company’s revenue for the quarter was up 53.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.18 EPS. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2025 guidance at 23.000-23.700 EPS. On average, research analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a dividend of $1.73 per share. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.50. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 13th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.35%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. 10Elms LLP raised its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. 10Elms LLP now owns 40 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.3% during the third quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 3,955 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,018,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Manske Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Manske Wealth Management now owns 448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $342,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Guardian Partners Inc. boosted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Guardian Partners Inc. now owns 4,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,302,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

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.