In the latest trading session, Eli Lilly (LLY) closed at $128.30, marking a -0.01% move from the previous day. This change was narrower than the S&P 500's 1.9% loss on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 1.77%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 2.5%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the drugmaker had gained 4.56% over the past month. This has outpaced the Medical sector's gain of 2.84% and the S&P 500's gain of 3.04% in that time.
LLY will be looking to display strength as it nears its next earnings release. The company is expected to report EPS of $1.35, up 0.75% from the prior-year quarter.
LLY's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $5.65 per share and revenue of $25.32 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of +1.8% and +3.1%, respectively.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for LLY. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company's business and profitability.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
The Zacks Rank system, which ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has an impressive outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks generating an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.57% higher. LLY is currently a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Digging into valuation, LLY currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 22.72. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 15.45.
Also, we should mention that LLY has a PEG ratio of 2.58. The PEG ratio is similar to the widely-used P/E ratio, but this metric also takes the company's expected earnings growth rate into account. The Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry currently had an average PEG ratio of 2.14 as of yesterday's close.
The Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry is part of the Medical sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 96, putting it in the top 38% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Make sure to utilize Zacks. Com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.
Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY): Free Stock Analysis Report
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