Lilly (Eli) management check
LLY · Health Care · Pharmaceuticals · CEO Mr. Ricks
Filings as of
5 good · 1 to watch · 0 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Good
Have owners done well?
Beat its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $671, against $154 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Watch
Does pay follow performance?
Pay only loosely tracked returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 0.07 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Good
What does the CEO cost owners?
0.2% of net income$36.7m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $20.6bn of net income.
- n/a
Do they own the stock?
No recent CEO filingLight activity: no buys, $18.8m sold in six months. 4 of 4 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- Good
Are owners being diluted?
Share count shrinkingDiluted shares changed -0.2% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 1.0% of revenue in the latest year.
- Good
Is leadership stable?
6 leadership filings in 3 yearsCEO in the pay table: Mr. Ricks. 6 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Health Care.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 100 | 26 | |
| Pay for performance | 53 | 85 | |
| CEO cost | 100 | 44 | |
| Skin in the game | — | — | 46 |
| Dilution | 53 | 68 | |
| Stable leadership | 95 | 70 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Pharmaceuticals, by management score. Lilly (Eli) is 3rd of 60 in its sector.
- 32LLYLilly (Eli)84
- 181ZTSZoetis70
- 190JNJJohnson & Johnson69
- 207BMYBristol Myers Squibb68
- 263PFEPfizer64
- 323MRKMerck & Co.60
- 369VTRSViatris57
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed March 20, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Mr. Ricks | $36.7m | $75.2m | $10.9m | $671 | $154 | $20.6bn |
| 2024 | — | $29.2m | $80.6m | $6.1m | $478 | $123 | $10.6bn |
| 2023 | — | $26.6m | $120.9m | $7.8m | $359 | $118 | $5.2bn |
| 2022 | — | $21.4m | $64.1m | $5.8m | $223 | $125 | $6.2bn |
| 2021 | — | $21.5m | $75.7m | $4.7m | $166 | $117 | $5.6bn |
The board says pay is tied most to adjusted non-GAAP EPS. Its other key measures: Adjusted non-GAAP EPS, Total Shareholder Return, Revenue.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Light activity: no buys, $18.8m sold in six months. 4 of 4 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- SoldPatrik JonssonEVP & President, LLY Int'l · 10b5-1 plan$7.6mAug 17, 2026
- SoldAnat HakimEVP, GC & Secretary · 10b5-1 plan$6.0mAug 7, 2026
- SoldIlya YuffaEVP&Pres, LLY USA&Global Capab · 10b5-1 plan$2.9mJun 10, 2026
- SoldDonald A ZakrowskiSVP, Finance, & CAO · 10b5-1 plan$2.4mAug 10, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Nov 21, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Nov 19, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Sep 9, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Aug 16, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jul 10, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 5, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Mar 17, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- May 6, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: May 7, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $30.9bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 64% of net income, and $2.6bn of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $28.3bn | $28.5bn | $34.1bn | $45.0bn | $65.2bn |
| Net income | $5.6bn | $6.2bn | $5.2bn | $10.6bn | $20.6bn |
| Stock-based pay | $342.8m | $371.1m | $629.0m | $646.0m | $626.0m |
| Buybacks | $1.3bn | $1.5bn | $750.0m | $2.5bn | $4.1bn |
| Dividends | $3.1bn | $3.5bn | $4.1bn | $4.7bn | $5.4bn |
| Diluted shares | 912m | 905m | 903m | 904m | 899m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.