Eli Lilly shares close lower on Wednesday, quarterly results mixed, full-year adjusted profit forecast revised up

Eli Lilly and Company’s quarterly profit, reported on Wednesday, topped Wall Street estimates, supported by sales of its Humalog diabetes drug and by lower tax bill.

Eli Lilly shares closed lower for the fifth time in the past eleven trading sessions in New York on Wednesday. It has also been the steepest daily loss since October 2nd. The stock went down 2.22% ($2.44) to $107.40, after touching an intraday low at $101.62, or a price level not seen since August 14th 2018 ($101.27).

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company have retreated 7.19% so far in 2019 compared with a 19.85% gain for the benchmark index, S&P 500 (SPX).

In 2018, Eli Lilly’s stock went up 37.01%, thus, it outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a 6.24% loss.

Eli Lilly’s third-quarter revenue, reported at $5.48 billion, fell short of market consensus of $5.50 billion, mostly because of flat overall sales in the United States.

The two versions of the company’s insulin injection Humalog generated $648.9 million in revenue during the third quarter and also outstripped the median analyst estimate of $645.33 million.

Net income attributable to shareholders was reported at $1.25 billion ($1.37 per share) during the quarter ended on September 30th compared with $1.15 billion ($1.12 per share) in the same period a year earlier.

Meanwhile, earnings per share, which exclude special items, were reported at $1.48 during the third quarter, thus, exceeding the median analyst estimate of $1.41 per share.

Eli Lilly also revised up its full-year 2019 adjusted earnings forecast to a range of $5.75-$5.85 per share from a previously expected range of $5.67-$5.77 per share.

Analyst stock price forecast and recommendation

According to CNN Money, the 11 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Eli Lilly and Co’s stock price, have a median target of $133.00, with a high estimate of $145.00 and a low estimate of $93.00. The median estimate represents a 23.84% upside compared to the closing price of $107.40 on October 23rd.

The same media also reported that at least 7 out of 14 surveyed investment analysts had rated Eli Lilly and Co’s stock as “Hold”, while other 7 – as “Buy”.