Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE:ELAN) Sees Significant Drop in Short Interest
by Amy Steele · The Cerbat GemElanco Animal Health Incorporated (NYSE:ELAN – Get Free Report) saw a large decline in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 18,414,142 shares, a decline of 20.7% from the January 29th total of 23,228,810 shares. Approximately 3.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 4,571,050 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.0 days. Based on an average daily volume of 4,571,050 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 4.0 days. Approximately 3.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short.
Elanco Animal Health Trading Down 4.8%
Shares of ELAN traded down $1.24 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $24.85. The company had a trading volume of 2,601,396 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,625,557. Elanco Animal Health has a fifty-two week low of $8.02 and a fifty-two week high of $27.72. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $24.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.92. The stock has a market cap of $12.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -51.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a current ratio of 2.17, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60.
Elanco Animal Health (NYSE:ELAN – Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.02. Elanco Animal Health had a positive return on equity of 7.16% and a negative net margin of 4.92%.The business had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.14 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. Elanco Animal Health has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.330-0.36 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 1.000-1.060 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Elanco Animal Health will post 0.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ELAN. Piper Sandler raised Elanco Animal Health from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $24.00 to $30.00 in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Elanco Animal Health from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 19th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Elanco Animal Health from $27.00 to $30.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Elanco Animal Health in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Elanco Animal Health from $24.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $27.67.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on ELAN
Insider Activity at Elanco Animal Health
In other news, Director Lawrence Erik Kurzius bought 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $21.30 per share, with a total value of $213,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 131,773 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,806,764.90. This trade represents a 8.21% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Rajeev A. Modi purchased 4,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $21.33 per share, with a total value of $95,985.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 123,082 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,625,339.06. This represents a 3.79% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders acquired 43,450 shares of company stock valued at $937,883. Company insiders own 0.89% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Elanco Animal Health
Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Elanco Animal Health by 133.7% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 1,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in Elanco Animal Health by 2,563.5% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 1,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,333 shares during the last quarter. Huntington National Bank grew its holdings in Elanco Animal Health by 136.7% during the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 1,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 1,087 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Elanco Animal Health by 50.7% in the 4th quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,759 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Elanco Animal Health in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. 97.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
About Elanco Animal Health
Elanco Animal Health Inc is a global leader in animal health dedicated to improving food and companion animal well-being. The company develops, manufactures and markets a range of products, including parasiticides, vaccines, antibiotics and feed additives designed to prevent and treat disease in livestock and pets. Elanco’s portfolio spans both food-producing animals—such as cattle, swine, poultry and aquaculture—and companion animals, with offerings that support parasite control, pain management and infectious disease prevention.
Originally founded as the animal health division of Eli Lilly and Company in the mid-20th century, Elanco was spun off into an independent publicly traded company in 2018.