Eli Lilly Upgraded to Buy with $1,200 Target, Acquires Orna for $2.4B
Freedom Capital upgraded Eli Lilly to Buy from Hold and raised its price target to $1,200 from $1,050 after record GLP-1 drug sales beat high-end revenue and EPS estimates. Eli Lilly agreed to acquire Orna Therapeutics for up to $2.4 billion to advance its engineered circular RNA cell therapies in vivo.
1. Freedom Capital Upgrade
Freedom Capital upgraded Eli Lilly from Hold to Buy on February 10, boosting its price target from $1,050 to $1,200 after the company posted record GLP-1 drug sales that exceeded high-end revenue and EPS estimates.
2. Strong Q4 and 2026 Outlook
Eli Lilly reported Q4 revenue of $19.3 billion versus $18 billion consensus, and Deutsche Bank maintained a Buy rating with a $1,200 target while guiding fiscal 2026 revenue to $80–83 billion and confirming the U.S. launch of Orforg in Q2 2026.
3. Acquisition of Orna Therapeutics
The company entered a definitive agreement to acquire Orna Therapeutics for up to $2.4 billion in cash, including milestone payments, to gain its lead program ORN-252, a CD19-targeting in vivo CAR T-cell therapy using engineered circular RNA and lipid nanoparticles.