Back to top

Image: Shutterstock

Zacks Investment Ideas feature highlights: Eli Lilly

Read MoreHide Full Article

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – November 18, 2022 – Today, Zacks Investment Ideas feature highlights Eli Lilly & Co. (LLY - Free Report) .

How Markets Have Fared Under a Divided Congress

“What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”

On Wednesday, major news organizations declared a victory for Republicans in taking majority control of the House of Representatives. While GOP expectations of a “red wave” never came to fruition, they were able to remove Democrats from vital positions of power. And with Democrats retaining control of the Senate, congressional leadership will be split for at least the next two years, potentially thwarting President Biden’s legislative agenda for the remainder of his term. 

How have markets historically fared under a split Congress?

It’s clear that markets applaud the ‘certainty’ that comes with a divided Congress, as one side prevents the other from passing aggressive legislation. And as we attempt to make our way out of this bear market, it’s nice to have positive historical statistics like this on our side.

Still, major headwinds remain for the economy, including lingering inflation and slowing earnings growth. Fourth-quarter earnings estimates have come down significantly in recent weeks, with analysts now expecting negative earnings growth and substantially lower revenue growth. And while it’s possible that the October low marked the bottom in the market, it’s simply too early to call and we won’t know it until after the fact.

The most prudent course of action, for now, is to target stocks that have displayed immunity to the year’s volatility and are still showing positive trends. The Zacks Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry is currently ranked in the top 21% out of approximately 250 industries. Because it is ranked in the top half of all Zacks Ranked Industries, we expect this group to outperform the market over the next 3 to 6 months.

Digging a bit deeper, this group has widely outperformed the market this year with a nearly 7% return. Yet despite the impressive price performance, the Zacks Large Cap Pharmaceuticals industry remains relatively undervalued.

Quantitative research studies have shown that approximately half of a stock’s future price movement can be attributed to its industry group. By focusing on stocks within the top industries, we can dramatically improve our odds of success. Let’s take a deeper look at a leading stock within this highly-rated industry.

Eli Lilly & Co.

Eli Lilly discovers, develops, and markets human pharmaceuticals worldwide. The company’s array of products serves a vast number of therapeutic areas including diabetes, neuroscience, oncology and immunology, all of which are high growth areas that represent significant commercial potential. LLY boasts a dependable pipeline and is one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies.

Eli Lilly most recently announced Q3 earnings results earlier this month of $1.98/share, a 0.51% beat over consensus estimates. The pharmaceutical giant boasts a market capitalization of $335.4 billion and pays a $3.92 (1.11%) dividend. LLY Shares have bucked the downtrend this year, advancing nearly 31% while the market continues in a deep correction.

Looking ahead to next year, the streak is expected to continue with analysts projecting EPS growth of 18.31% to $9.24/share. Revenues are anticipated to climb 7.67% to $30.78 billion.

In an uncertain economic environment, LLY has shown relatively little volatility while rewarding shareholders with substantial gains. Given a historically positive divided Congress in the near future, LLY investors have reason to remain bullish heading into 2023.

Why Haven’t You Looked at Zacks' Top Stocks?

Our 5 best-performing strategies have blown away the S&P's impressive +28.8% gain in 2021. Amazingly, they soared +40.3%, +48.2%, +67.6%, +94.4%, and +95.3%. Today you can access their live picks without cost or obligation.

See Stocks Free >>

Media Contact

Zacks Investment Research

800-767-3771 ext. 9339

support@zacks.com

https://www.zacks.com

Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.


See More Zacks Research for These Tickers


Normally $25 each - click below to receive one report FREE:


Eli Lilly and Company (LLY) - free report >>

Published in