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Stock Comparison · Industry comparison · Drug Manufacturers - General

AstraZeneca vs Eli Lilly and Company: Which Stock Looks Stronger in 2026?

Eli Lilly and Company holds the cleaner structural position, with the lead spread across profitability and growth. AstraZeneca still has the edge on stability, which keeps the comparison from looking entirely one-sided. The market setup is broadly comparable for both — no clear directional signal from price behavior. The market is not adding a decisive signal either way — the structural read carries the weight.

The comparison is based on similar long-term financial trajectories, not sector labels. Peer scores are normalised within each company's primary universe (AZN.L: STOXX 600, LLY: S&P 500).

Updated 2026-07-05

The lead is spread across profitability and growth, rather than sitting in one isolated gap. The overall score gap is 20 points in favour of Eli Lilly and Company.

INDUSTRY COMPARISON

Both operate in: Drug Manufacturers - General

This comparison is based on industry proximity, not on functional trajectory similarity. AZN.L and LLY share the same industry classification.

For a similarity-based comparison, see how AstraZeneca and Eli Lilly and Company each position within their functional peer groups in AssetNext.

Peer-Relative Score
AZN.L
AstraZeneca PLC
50
Peer-Score
Signal qualityHigh
Peer basis: STOXX 600
vs
LLY
Eli Lilly and Company
70
Peer-Score
Signal qualityHigh
Peer basis: S&P 500

Scores reflect position relative to comparable companies with similar long-term financial trajectories.

The largest gaps do not all point in the same direction.

Dimension spread: AZN.L vs LLY Profitability 44 100 Stability 68 34 Valuation 43 43 Growth 50 100 AZN.L LLY
Gap Ranking
#1 Profitability +56
#2 Growth +50
#3 Stability +34
#4 Valuation
Price Setup

Left means cheaper relative valuation. Higher means stronger structure.

Price setup map for AZN.L and LLY Stronger + cheaper Stronger + richer Weaker + cheaper Weaker + richer AZN.LLLY Relative valuation Structural strength

The price setup looks more supportive for Eli Lilly and Company, but AstraZeneca PLC still has the stronger structure.

Valuation position uses peer-relative PE percentile (idx_pct_pe) where available.

Relative Position vs Comparable Companies
Profitability
Both profiles are strong on profitability, but Eli Lilly and Company leads clearly.
Growth
On growth, the same pattern holds: both are strong, but Eli Lilly and Company still leads clearly.
Profitability — Dominant Gap
AZN.L
44
LLY
100
Gap+56in favour of LLY

The profitability lead is mainly driven by a 21.4-point operating margin advantage.

What keeps the gap from being one-sided

Stability still leans toward AstraZeneca PLC, so the lead is real without reading as one-way.

What this means for the comparison

The lead is built on both profitability and growth — though stability still provides a counterweight.

Explore full peer positioning in AssetNext

Break down the AZN.L vs LLY comparison across all dimensions with the full interactive tool.

Explore full breakdown →
Other comparisons with conflicting dimension signals

Explore how AZN.L and LLY each compare against other companies in their peer groups.

Rule-based, descriptive analysis only. Derived from peer percentile dimensions. Not investment advice. Peer groups are determined algorithmically based on structural similarity — not by sector classification alone.

How AssetNext Peer Scores Work

AssetNext scores reflect each company's structural position within its functional peer group — not a ranking against all stocks simultaneously. Peers are identified by similarity across eight financial dimensions, including revenue growth trajectory, margin structure, capital intensity, and earnings stability. A score of 75 means the company ranks in the top quartile within its own peer group, not the entire market.

Four dimension scores drive the overall peer score: Growth (revenue trajectory and expansion dynamics), Quality (margin structure and capital efficiency), Valuation (peer-relative pricing on standard multiples), and Stability (earnings consistency and financial predictability). Each dimension is scored 0–100 relative to the peer group, then combined into an overall peer score using equal weighting.

Because scores are peer-relative, the same company can have slightly different scores in different index universes. On comparison pages, both companies are shown within their shared peer universe wherever possible — so the scores are directly comparable. The peer basis is stated on each score card.

Scores are recalculated periodically as underlying financial data is updated. All analysis is descriptive and rule-based — AssetNext describes structural realities and never issues buy, sell or hold recommendations.