Eli Lilly Jumped 6% After Earnings. It’s Up 68% in a Year. Where Does the Target Go Now?
Mounjaro and Zepbound just handed Lilly a blowout quarter, but falling realized drug prices and one-time revenue boosts that won't repeat raise real questions about whether the rally holds from here.
Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY | LLY Price Prediction) rose 6.39% to $1,370.64 after third-quarter results came in ahead of estimates and management raised guidance.
Lilly’s 24/7 Wall St. price target is $1,572.21 over the next 12 months. The target implies 14.7% upside, and our model rates the stock a buy with high confidence.

| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Current Price | $1,370.64 |
| Price Target from 24/7 Wall St. | $1,572.21 |
| Upside/Downside | 14.7% |
| Recommendation | BUY |
| Confidence Level | 90% |
Today’s gain eats into some of the upside, but the target still sits well above the share price. Raised revenue guidance and a deep obesity pipeline carry most of the thesis.
Mounjaro and Zepbound Drove a 38.6% Revenue Surge
Lilly is up 7.86% in a week, 15.69% in a month, 28.16% year to date and 68.19% over 12 months. It now trades above its prior 52-week high of $1,321.21 and far above the $804.56 low.
Third-quarter revenue reached $24.40 billion, up 38.6%, against a $22.62 billion consensus. Non-GAAP EPS of $7.48 exceeded the $6.67 estimate even after booking $4.57 per share of acquired IPR&D charges.
Mounjaro brought in $10.72 billion (up 65%) and Zepbound $5.35 billion (up 49%). Full-year revenue guidance rose to $91-$92 billion from $85-$87 billion, and the injectables made up for a Foundayo sales miss, according to Reuters. CEO David Ricks said Lilly “had another strong quarter, exceeding our prior expectations.”
Why Bulls See $1,800 Within Reach
Retatrutide produced more than double the weight loss of Ozempic 2mg in a head-to-head trial, and Lilly plans a U.S. submission in quarter 1 2027. EloraTZP Phase 3 starts in Q4 2026, and Foundayo’s global launch is planned for 2027.
Performance margin guidance rose to 52%-52.5%. Analysts lean heavily positive, with 6 Strong Buy and 19 Buy ratings. Our bull case reaches $1,807.23, or 31.9% upside.
Falling Drug Prices Are the Risk to Watch
Tirzepatide volume rose 53% while realized prices fell 15%. Revenue also included about $900M of one-time benefits, among them $410M in Jardiance milestones, and no more of those milestones remain.
Operating income grew just 11.4%, though $4.18 billion of IPR&D charges from deals meant to branch out beyond GLP-1s explain much of that gap. The bear case of $1,317.78 implies 3.9% downside.
Lilly Commands a Premium Over Amgen and Merck
Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) is the closest U.S.-listed obesity challenger, with MariTide in ten Phase 3 studies. It trades near 20x the midpoint of its 2026 EPS guidance, compared with about 39x for Lilly.
Merck (NYSE:MRK) is a useful mega-cap value comparison, but its 2026 EPS guidance includes large acquisition charges that make a P/E misleading. Its revenue grew only 4.68% last quarter.
| Company | P/E (2026 Guidance) | Latest Revenue Growth |
|---|---|---|
| Eli Lilly | 39x | 38.6% |
| Amgen | 20x | 9.68% |
| Merck | Not meaningful | 4.68% |
With growth about four times faster than Amgen’s, Lilly’s premium looks earned. Against this peer group, our target looks reasonable.
Lilly’s Growth Still Justifies the Premium
Our 24/7 Wall St. price target of $1,572.21 carries a buy rating at 90% confidence. Volume growth is what tips the scale. The case strengthens if volume keeps outpacing price cuts and retatrutide’s filing stays on schedule. It weakens if realized prices fall faster than volume can make up for.
Eli Lilly Price Prediction 2026-2030
| Year | Price Target from 24/7 Wall St. |
|---|---|
| 2026 | $1,331.00 |
| 2027 | $1,581.07 |
| 2028 | $1,807.24 |
| 2029 | $2,041.58 |
| 2030 | $2,193.77 |
The model set its 2026 year-end target before today’s rally, and the stock has already passed it. These projections assume Lilly keeps executing. Retatrutide approval or deeper GLP-1 price cuts could move them significantly in either direction.
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