Eli Lilly's Climb Has Morgan Stanley Asking the $1T Question

Lilly’s market value overtook that of Tesla Inc. last month following disappointing earnings and growth concerns for the electric-car maker, which reached the $1 trillion mark in 2021 but has since fallen out of that select group.

The $1 trillion-plus club now consists of Microsoft Corp., Apple Inc., Nvidia Corp., Alphabet Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc. The only non-tech company with a higher market cap than Lilly is Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

Several analysts boosted their price targets on Lilly this month following upbeat earnings results, including those at Societe Generale SA, Jefferies and Barclays Plc, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Some, however, appear to be betting that the optimism has already been priced in: Lilly shares closed at $757.78 on Thursday, compared to the average analyst price target of $756.14.

The company’s blockbuster diabetes drug Mounjaro is commonly used off-label for weight loss, while Zepbound, which was recently approved for weight loss, is predicted to become the best-selling drug in history.

(Credit: Adobe Stock)