Investors with a lot of money to spend have taken a bearish stance on Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY).
And retail traders should know.
We noticed this today when the trades showed up on publicly available options history that we track here at Benzinga.
Whether these are institutions or just wealthy individuals, we don't know. But when something this big happens with LLY, it often means somebody knows something is about to happen.
So how do we know what these investors just did?
Today, Benzinga's options scanner spotted 16 uncommon options trades for Eli Lilly.
This isn't normal.
The overall sentiment of these big-money traders is split between 31% bullish and 37%, bearish.
Out of all of the special options we uncovered, 5 are puts, for a total amount of $857,114, and 11 are calls, for a total amount of $676,636.
Projected Price Targets
Based on the trading activity, it appears that the significant investors are aiming for a price territory stretching from $430.0 to $900.0 for Eli Lilly over the recent three months.
Volume & Open Interest Development
In today's trading context, the average open interest for options of Eli Lilly stands at 234.0, with a total volume reaching 262.00. The accompanying chart delineates the progression of both call and put option volume and open interest for high-value trades in Eli Lilly, situated within the strike price corridor from $430.0 to $900.0, throughout the last 30 days.
Eli Lilly Option Volume And Open Interest Over Last 30 Days
Noteworthy Options Activity:
| Symbol | PUT/CALL | Trade Type | Sentiment | Exp. Date | Ask | Bid | Price | Strike Price | Total Trade Price | Open Interest | Volume |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LLY | PUT | SWEEP | BEARISH | 01/16/26 | $61.0 | $56.5 | $61.0 | $710.00 | $286.7K | 95 | 0 |
| LLY | PUT | SWEEP | BEARISH | 01/16/26 | $56.9 | $53.3 | $56.9 | $700.00 | $221.9K | 448 | 39 |
| LLY | PUT | SWEEP | BEARISH | 07/18/25 | $41.8 | $38.6 | $41.8 | $710.00 | $167.2K | 53 | 40 |
| LLY | PUT | TRADE | BEARISH | 03/21/25 | $28.5 | $27.85 | $28.5 | $720.00 | $125.4K | 298 | 98 |
| LLY | CALL | TRADE | NEUTRAL | 12/18/26 | $232.0 | $223.55 | $227.0 | $660.00 | $113.5K | 18 | 5 |
About Eli Lilly
Eli Lilly is a drug firm with a focus on neuroscience, cardiometabolic, cancer, and immunology. Lilly's key products include Verzenio for cancer; Mounjaro, Zepbound, Jardiance, Trulicity, Humalog, and Humulin for cardiometabolic; and Taltz and Olumiant for immunology.
Following our analysis of the options activities associated with Eli Lilly, we pivot to a closer look at the company's own performance.
Present Market Standing of Eli Lilly
- Trading volume stands at 389,869, with LLY's price up by 0.04%, positioned at $779.29.
- RSI indicators show the stock to be may be approaching overbought.
- Earnings announcement expected in 49 days.
Expert Opinions on Eli Lilly
In the last month, 1 experts released ratings on this stock with an average target price of $997.0.
Unusual Options Activity Detected: Smart Money on the Move
Benzinga Edge's Unusual Options board spots potential market movers before they happen. See what positions big money is taking on your favorite stocks. Click here for access.* Reflecting concerns, an analyst from B of A Securities lowers its rating to Buy with a new price target of $997.
Options are a riskier asset compared to just trading the stock, but they have higher profit potential. Serious options traders manage this risk by educating themselves daily, scaling in and out of trades, following more than one indicator, and following the markets closely.
