Stock · Pharmaceuticals
Eli Lilly real return vs inflation and money printing LLY
Eli Lilly and Co. Pharmaceutical company whose weight-loss and diabetes drugs have made it one of the most valuable healthcare firms.
Key numbers
- 1-month change
- +4.7%
- Volatility (30-day, annualised)
- 19.3%
Eli Lilly real return after inflation and money printing
In dollars and pounds, before and after inflation, since Jan 1985.
+2,029%Eli Lilly after US inflation since 201019.9% a year
Up 3,202% in dollars since 2010. After US inflation, up 2,029%. Against money printing, up 1,104%.
In pounds, up 3,934%, or up 2,372% after UK inflation.
- $ nominal
- +3,202%23.1% a year
- £ nominal
- +3,934%24.6% a year
- Real $ (US CPI)
- +2,029%19.9% a year
- Real £ (UK CPI)
- +2,372%21.0% a year
- vs US M2
- +1,104%15.9% a year
- Measured from
- Dec 2009to Oct 2026, 16 years 10 months
- Eli Lilly, Real $ (US CPI)$1,179.00
- $ nominal$1,179.00
- Oct 2026, latest
Loading the chart. Every figure is also in the table below.
| Period | $ nominal | £ nominal | Real $ (US CPI) | Real £ (UK CPI) | vs US M2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Past year from Oct 2025 | +36.7% | +35.7% | –a (see note a) | +32.1% | +30.3% |
| 5 years from Oct 2021 | +363% 35.9% a year | +379% 36.8% a year | +282% 30.8% a year | +279% 30.5% a year | +320% 33.2% a year |
| Since 2020 from Dec 2019 | +797% 37.9% a year | +800% 37.9% a year | +588% 32.6% a year | +580% 32.4% a year | +490% 29.7% a year |
| 10 years from Oct 2016 | +1,497% 31.9% a year | +1,374% 30.9% a year | +1,052% 27.7% a year | +939% 26.4% a year | +798% 24.5% a year |
| Since 2010 from Dec 2009 | +3,202% 23.1% a year | +3,934% 24.6% a year | +2,029% 19.9% a year | +2,372% 21.0% a year | +1,104% 15.9% a year |
| Since 2000 from Dec 1999 | +1,673% 11.3% a year | +2,064% 12.1% a year | +791% 8.5% a year | +994% 9.3% a year | +252% 4.8% a year |
| Since Jan 1985 first month in our data | +26,335% 14.3% a year | +22,482% 13.9% a year | +8,226% 11.2% a year | +6,620% 10.6% a year | +2,541% 8.2% a year |
- a US CPI was not published for Oct 2025.
How these figures are worked out
Sources, inflation measures and what is left out
- Month-end closes from Yahoo Finance, Nasdaq, Jan 1985 to Oct 2026. Oct 2026 is still in progress, so its figure is the latest close rather than a month-end. Our history for Eli Lilly starts in Jan 1985, so longer windows are left out.
- Real figures divide by US CPI (BLS, via FRED) or UK CPI (ONS, joined to the ONS long-run RPI before Jan 1988) and are stated in Oct 2026 money. The M2 lens divides by the US M2 money supply (Federal Reserve, via FRED). Pounds convert at each month's GBP/USD rate.
- US CPI is published with a lag: Oct 2026 uses the Aug 2026 figure.
- UK CPI is published with a lag: Oct 2026 uses the Aug 2026 figure.
- US M2 is published with a lag: Oct 2026 uses the Aug 2026 figure.
- Price returns only: dividends are not included, so the total return to a holder who reinvested them was higher.
- A return of 12 months or more also shows its yearly rate. Gaps in a source are left as gaps and never filled in.
Eli Lilly price history, past year
Daily closes from Nasdaq. Last refreshed .
Where Eli Lilly stands today
52-week range
- Below the high
- 8.8%
- Above the low
- 46.0%
At $1,167.61, Eli Lilly is higher than 82% of its daily closes over the past year and only 8.8% short of the $1,280.34 high it set on 19 Aug 2026.
Moving averages
- 50-day$1,175.57 -0.7%
- 200-day$1,077.51 +8.4%
Price compared with each average. Bars to the right mean the price is above it.
Eli Lilly has slipped 0.7% below its 50-day average but is still 8.4% above the 200-day, which tells us the recent dip hasn't yet broken the longer uptrend. The 50-day line has stayed above the 200-day on every day since 24 Jun 2026, as far back as our data lets us check.
Trend score
- Trend70
- Momentum62
- RSI score76
- Drawdown82
- Uptrend
- 65 or more
- Sideways
- 36 to 64
- Downtrend
- 35 or less
Rules-based, from 277 daily prices. It describes the trend so far and does not predict the next move. How it works.
Eli Lilly performance and biggest moves
Returns over time
| Period | LLY | SPY | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 week | +0.9% | -0.1% | +1.0 pts |
| 1 month | +4.7% | +1.9% | +2.8 pts |
| 3 months | +0.9% | +3.1% | −2.2 pts |
| Year to date | +8.6% | +14.2% | −5.5 pts |
| 1 year | +42.5% | +17.4% | +25.1 pts |
Eli Lilly is up 42.5% over the past year on price alone, against +17.4% for the S&P 500 (through the SPY fund), so it has beaten that comparison by 25.1 percentage points. Dividends are not included, so the total return for holders would be a little higher.
Best and worst days in the past year
- Days that closed higher
- 50%
- Moves of 3% or more
- 31
The biggest one-day rise since 13 Oct 2025 came on 4 Feb 2026 (+10.3%) and the sharpest fall on 5 Feb 2026 (−7.8%). Of the 251 trading days in that period, 50% closed higher than the day before and 31 moved by 3% or more in one direction or the other.
Is Eli Lilly overbought, and how volatile is it?
RSI (14-day)
Neutral- Sessions at 70+ (past year)
- 25
- Sessions at 30 or lower
- 1
Eli Lilly's RSI of 50.3 is near the middle of the scale, which tells us the up and down days of the last three weeks have more or less cancelled each other out. For context, it last went above 70 on 29 Jun 2026 and last fell below 30 on 27 Mar 2026.
Volatility against other US shares
7th calmest of 27- Typical daily move
- 1.2%
- Calmest in group
- BRK.B 10.8%
Eli Lilly's 30-day volatility is 19.3%, which works out at a move of roughly 1.2% on an ordinary day. That makes it the 7th calmest of the 27 US shares we track, below the group median of 23.3%. We use the same 30-day window for every asset so the ranking is like for like, though it shifts as big days drop out of the window.
Eli Lilly compared with similar assets
| Asset | Price | Today | 1 month | 1 year | RSI | Trend score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LLYEli Lilly | $1,167.61 | +0.05% | +4.7% | +42.5% | 50 | 70 Uptrend |
| UNHUnitedHealth | $378.11 | +0.12% | -0.3% | +5.4% | 48 | 61 Sideways |
| JNJJohnson & Johnson | $249.54 | +0.37% | -6.0% | +30.7% | 35 | 52 Sideways |
| NVDANVIDIA | $229.24 | +0.32% | +5.0% | +21.7% | 53 | 89 Uptrend |
Over the past year Eli Lilly has done best in this group (+42.5%) and UnitedHealth has been the weakest (+5.4%).
About Eli Lilly
Eli Lilly was founded in Indianapolis in 1876. Tirzepatide, sold as Mounjaro for diabetes and Zepbound for weight loss, has driven most of its recent growth.
- Ticker
- LLY
- Type
- Stock
- Sector
- Pharmaceuticals
- Priced in
- USD
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Eli Lilly: questions people ask
Answers are built from the same live figures shown above, so they change as the price does. Last checked 14 Oct 2026.
Has Eli Lilly beaten inflation since 2010?
Yes. From the December 2009 close to October 2026, Eli Lilly went up 3,202% in dollars. US consumer prices rose 55.1% over the same months, which leaves a real gain of 2,029%, or 19.9% a year after inflation. A UK holder counting in pounds saw up 3,934%, which comes to up 2,372% once UK CPI is taken out. These are price returns: dividends are not included, so a holder who reinvested them did better.
How has Eli Lilly done against money printing?
The US M2 money supply grew 174% since 2010. M2 counts the cash, current accounts and savings deposits held in the US, so it measures how much new money was created rather than how much shop prices rose. Against it, Eli Lilly is up 1,104%.
What is Eli Lilly's real return over 10 years?
Over the 10 years to October 2026, Eli Lilly returned 1,497% in dollars (31.9% a year). After US inflation that is up 1,052%, 27.7% a year. In pounds after UK inflation it is up 939%.
What is the Eli Lilly share price today?
The last price we have for Eli Lilly is $1,167.61, up 0.1% on the day, as of 23:55 BST on 13 Oct 2026. We get US prices from Nasdaq and during trading hours they can be up to 15 minutes behind, so if you are about to trade you'll want the live quote from your broker rather than ours. Over the last month the shares have moved +4.7% and over the last year +42.5%.
Is Eli Lilly stock overbought right now?
No, or at least not on the 14-day RSI, which reads 50.3 at the moment. We'd only start calling Eli Lilly overbought above 70 and it hasn't been there since 29 Jun 2026, while the last time it went the other way and dropped below 30 was 27 Mar 2026. RSI looks back over 14 sessions and asks how much of the movement was up and how much was down, so a reading in the 50s or 60s mostly tells us the past few weeks have been fairly even. Eli Lilly spent 25 sessions at 70 or above in the past year, which is one reason we don't treat a high reading as a cue to sell: in a strong run it can stay there for weeks.
How far is Eli Lilly from its 52-week high?
Not far, about 8.8%. The highest close in the past year was $1,280.34 on 19 Aug 2026 and the lowest was $799.57 on 21 Oct 2025, which puts today's price 77% of the way up that range. We work this out from daily closing prices rather than the intraday highs and lows an exchange reports, so our high can be a little lower than the one you'll see quoted elsewhere.
Is Eli Lilly above its 200-day moving average?
It is. Eli Lilly's last price of $1,167.61 is 8.4% above its 200-day average of $1,077.51, and the 50-day average of $1,175.57 is above the 200-day as well, which has been true on every day since 24 Jun 2026, as far back as our data goes. We show the 200-day line because it averages about ten months of closing prices, so a single bad week hardly moves it, and when we look at a chart it's the quickest way to see whether a share has been rising or falling over the longer run, even if it can't tell us where the price goes from here.
How volatile is Eli Lilly stock?
Over the past 30 days Eli Lilly's annualised volatility has been 19.3%. If that number feels abstract, it works out at roughly a 1.2% move on an ordinary day. It is the 7th calmest of the 27 US shares we track and the median for the group is 23.3%, so at the moment it is calmer than most of them. The biggest single-day swings of the past year were +10.3% on 4 Feb 2026 and −7.8% on 5 Feb 2026.
Important information
Capital at risk. The value of investments can fall as well as rise and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results. Educational information only, not financial advice. Read our disclaimer.
Eli Lilly: what the numbers say
Claude Haiku ·Eli Lilly shares closed at $1,159.60 today, down 1.95% with the US market open. That leaves the stock 9.4% below its 52-week closing high of $1,280.34, set on 19 August, and 45% above its closing low of $799.57, reached on 21 October last year. The price now sits below its 50-day average of $1,175.41 but remains above the 200-day average of $1,077.47.
Read the full summary Show less
The trend score of 68 places the stock in an Uptrend, with momentum at 58 and a 30-day change of 3.93%. The 14-day RSI reads 48, close to the middle of its range, and 30-day volatility stands at 19.8% annualised. Over the past year the shares have risen 41.52%. Among related names, Johnson & Johnson fell 5.74% today, UnitedHealth edged down 0.12% and NVIDIA gained 0.5%.
Written by AI from this site's live data and checked figure by figure before publishing. Educational only, not financial advice.