LLY vs PEP Stock Comparison

Eli Lilly and Company vs PepsiCo, Inc.

Data as of Sep 2, 2026· market close· Cross-sector · Healthcare vs Consumer Defensive· Coverage 54/66 fields· Moderate confidence
AIQ VerdictFragileAIQ Comparison Conviction 5/10

PEP leads

PEP leads by 12 AIQ points, primarily on Momentum and Value, having only recently taken the lead back from LLY. Wall Street currently favors LLY on target upside.

Fragile: 3 of 6 evidence groups support PEP, and the lead recently changed hands.

Evidence agreement: 3 of 6Comparison trend: Reversed
LLY

Eli Lilly and Company

AIQ Score
43/100
AIQ Edge Score
3/10
PEP

PepsiCo, Inc.

Leads
AIQ Score
55/100
AIQ Edge Score
8/10

The Algovestiq AIQ Score currently favors PEP over LLY, 55 versus 43 as of Sep 2, 2026. PEP's advantage is driven primarily by stronger momentum and value, while LLY holds the stronger quality profile. PEP also shows the stronger technical structure relative to its 50-day moving average, though analyst target upside currently favors LLY. 3 of 6 covered evidence groups favor PEP today, and the comparison is rated Fragile on stability: only 3 of 6 covered evidence groups agree. PEP lead: Reversed — LLY led by 4 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; PEP now leads by 12.

Compare Eli Lilly and Company and PepsiCo, Inc. across the Algovestiq AIQ Score, valuation, quality, momentum, risk, technicals and analyst expectations.

AIQ Factor Divergence

Where the two separate, on the four dimensions behind the AIQ Score. Bars read outward from a shared zero: further from the centre is a wider gap.

LLY advantage
0
PEP advantage
  • Momentum25%23 vs 59
    PEP +36
  • Value30%25 vs 45
    PEP +20
  • Quality30%76 vs 64
    LLY +12
  • Risk Resilience15%45 vs 52
    PEP +7

3 of 6 evidence groups favor PEP. PEP’s edge is concentrated in momentum and value; LLY keeps a meaningful quality edge.

What changed since the last close

Latest scored session 2026-09-01, compared against the prior scored session 2026-08-31.

LLY0 AIQ

No factor moved materially.

No new signals fired.

PEP0 AIQ

No factor moved materially.

No new signals fired.

PEP's lead was unchanged in the latest snapshot.

Deeper signal detail for each name lives on its own signals page — LLY and PEP both carry a full feed there.

The central trade-off

PEP (PepsiCo, Inc.): the stronger current systematic profile, led by momentum and value.

LLY (Eli Lilly and Company): the counter-case, on quality, fundamentals, technicals — but at materially higher volatility, 38.3% against 16.5%.

The AIQ Score and Wall Street therefore point in different directions on this pair.

Which one fits your objective

The same two names rank differently depending on what you are optimizing for. All six reads are shown at once — none of them is hidden behind a toggle.

Balanced

PEP

PEP on the overall AIQ Score, which weights Quality and Value at 30% each.

Growth

PEP

PEP on combined revenue and EPS growth.

Value

PEP

PEP on the peer-relative Value factor, by 20 points.

Momentum

PEP

PEP on the Momentum factor, by 36 points.

Lower downside

PEP

PEP on Risk Resilience, by 7 points.

Analyst upside

LLY

LLY on implied upside to the consensus price target.

AIQ vs Wall Street

The model and the Street disagree here: AIQ favors PEP, analyst targets favor LLY. That disagreement is the most useful thing on this page.

MeasureLLYPEPNote
Implied upside to target+14.2%+11.6%LLY has more room
Target dispersion+28.6%+31.1%Lower is tighter analyst agreement
ConsensusBuyHoldContext, not a primary driver
Analysts covering1611Higher coverage generally improves confidence

The two are measuring different things. The AIQ Score reads current fundamentals, valuation, trend and risk; analyst targets price forward expectations. A divergence of this kind is either a contrarian opportunity or a sign the model is missing something already priced in — it is worth resolving before acting on either.

Analyst targets are expectations, not predictions. Dispersion matters as much as the midpoint.

AIQ Agreement Matrix

3 of 6 covered evidence groups favor PEP. A wide gap backed by one group is a weaker case than a narrow gap backed by five.

Evidence groupFavorsReading
AIQ ScorePEP43 vs 55
FundamentalsLLYon balancerevenue growth 16% vs 24.4%; EPS growth -3.9% vs 28.2%; ROE 92.6% vs 50.4%; gross margin 84% vs 54%; operating margin 43.9% vs 15% — LLY takes 3 of 5 decided legs, not all of them
ValuationPEPValue 25 vs 45
TechnicalsLLYPrice vs 50-day -1.9% vs 1%; vs 200-day 9.1% vs -5.8%
Risk ResiliencePEPRisk Resilience 45 vs 52
Analyst expectationsLLYTarget upside 14.2% vs 11.6%

✓ agrees with the overall verdict · ✕ points the other way. Groups marked “not covered” lack data on one or both of LLY and PEP and are excluded from the count.

AIQ Decision Stability

Fragile

The conclusion is sensitive to small changes. Treat the lead as provisional and watch the flip conditions below.

  • The AIQ gap is wide at 12 points. (supports the conclusion holding)
  • Only 3 of 6 covered evidence groups agree. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
  • The lead has already changed hands inside the comparison window. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
  • The lead has swung materially session to session. (argues the conclusion is provisional)
  • Signal direction runs against the verdict: the leader is net-bearish while the laggard is net-bullish. (argues the conclusion is provisional)

Stability combines the score gap, how broadly the evidence agrees, how steady the lead has been across daily snapshots, the current signal state on both names, and analyst dispersion on PEP.

How the comparison changed

120 daily snapshots · Apr 20 Sep 1

PEP lead: Reversed — LLY led by 4 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; PEP now leads by 12.

Apr 20LLY leads above the line · PEP leads belowSep 1
Today
PEP +12
43 vs 55
7 sessions ago
PEP +6
45 vs 51
30 sessions ago
LLY +4
56 vs 52
90 sessions ago
LLY +5
55 vs 50

The lead changed hands 8 times in this window, most recently on Aug 26 when PEP moved ahead of LLY.

AIQ Signal Divergence

Only the signals that bear on the head-to-head. A conflicted name is carrying bullish and bearish rules at the same time — the technical evidence is not pointing one way.

LLYConflicted

2 bullish / 1 bearish, conflicted

  • Golden Cross Active bullish, trend, long horizon (12.01%)
  • EMA Ribbon Expansion Bullish bullish, trend, medium horizon
  • MACD Bearish Crossover bearish, momentum, short horizon
PEP

0 bullish / 2 bearish / 1 neutral

  • Death Cross Active bearish, trend, long horizon (6.53%)
  • Bollinger Band Squeeze neutral, volatility, short horizon
  • MACD Bearish Crossover bearish, momentum, short horizon

LLY is conflicted, so the timing case there is weaker than the score alone suggests.

Price vs model alignment

Whether the latest session's price move confirms what the model did over the same session, or contradicts it.

LLYNo material change

Neither the price nor the AIQ Score moved enough in the latest session to confirm or contradict the other (price +0.44%, AIQ 0 points).

PEPNo material change

Neither the price nor the AIQ Score moved enough in the latest session to confirm or contradict the other (price +0.97%, AIQ 0 points).

What would flip this result

A state, not a forecast. These are the specific, observable changes that would reverse the verdict — not a price prediction.

  1. 1LLY closes the Momentum gap — currently 36 points behind, the largest single contributor to PEP's edge.
  2. 2LLY's MACD Bearish Crossover resolves — a bearish momentum rule currently active against it.
  3. 3PEP starts generating bearish momentum or trend signals.
  4. 4A regime shift changes factor weighting — the composite weights Quality and Value at 30% each, so a rotation toward either would move the result most.

The full evidence

Every number behind the verdict. The leader is called above each group so you are not left to solve it from the table.

Fundamentals

LLY leads on balance
MetricLLYPEP
Revenue growth (YoY)16%24.4%
EPS growth (YoY)-3.9%28.2%
Gross margin84%54%
Operating margin43.9%15%
Return on equity92.6%50.4%
Debt to equity1.622.41

Technicals

LLY has the stronger structure
MetricLLYPEP
RSI (14)4055
ADX (14)17.611.7
Price vs 50-day-1.9%1%
Price vs 200-day9.1%-5.8%
Volatility (1M, annualized)38.3%16.5%

Risk

PEP is the more resilient
MetricLLYPEP
Beta0.32-0.26
Sharpe ratio1.35-0.3
Sortino ratio2.58-0.51
Max drawdown-23.3%-20.9%
Current drawdown-9.7%-17.7%
Annualized volatility35.9%21.3%
Value at risk (95%)-2.7%-2.1%

Straight answers

Each answer is regenerated from the current snapshot, not written once and left to age.

Which is better, LLY or PEP?

On the Algovestiq AIQ Score, PEP is the stronger of the two as of Sep 2, 2026, scoring 55 against LLY's 43. The edge comes from momentum and value. LLY is not without a case — it holds the better quality profile, which matters more if that is the objective you are optimizing for. This is a systematic score, not a recommendation: it ranks the two on the same evidence, it does not know your holding period or tax position.

Is LLY or PEP the better buy right now?

PEP carries the stronger systematic profile as of Sep 2, 2026, and the comparison is rated Fragile — 3 of 6 covered evidence groups agree. A Fragile rating means the conclusion is sensitive: only 3 of 6 covered evidence groups agree. Treat the lead as provisional.

Why does the AIQ Score favor PEP over LLY?

The composite weights Quality at 30%, Value at 30%, Momentum at 25% and Risk Resilience at 15%. PEP leads Momentum by 36 points; PEP leads Value by 20 points; LLY leads Quality by 12 points. Where the two split, the factor with the larger weight carries the result.

Which has more analyst upside, LLY or PEP?

Analyst price targets imply +14.2% upside for LLY and +11.6% for PEP, so the Street currently favors LLY. That points the opposite way to the AIQ Score, which favors PEP. The two are measuring different things: the model reads current fundamentals, valuation, trend and risk; the Street is pricing forward expectations. A divergence of this kind is either a contrarian opportunity or a sign the model is missing something the analysts have already priced — it is the single most useful row on this page to investigate. Analyst targets are expectations, not predictions, and dispersion matters as much as the midpoint.

Which is better value, LLY or PEP?

PEP is the better-valued of the two on the peer-relative Value factor. PEP on the peer-relative Value factor, by 20 points. The Value factor reads valuation relative to sector peers and to the company's own fundamental quality, so it is not the same as simply having the lower multiple.

Which has stronger growth, LLY or PEP?

PEP on combined revenue and EPS growth. Growth here is measured on reported revenue and earnings, not on forward estimates — it describes what the businesses have delivered, not what the Street expects next.

Which has stronger momentum, LLY or PEP?

PEP on the Momentum factor, by 36 points. Momentum carries 25% of the AIQ composite. It has documented persistence over three- to twelve-month horizons, which makes it a timing input rather than a reason to hold something indefinitely.

Which is riskier, LLY or PEP?

PEP is the more resilient of the two, so the other name carries the higher downside risk. PEP on Risk Resilience, by 7 points. The Risk Resilience factor weights 15% of the composite; position sizing usually responds to it more usefully than the buy/avoid decision does.

Is LLY more profitable than PEP?

LLY leads on the comparable margin measures — gross margin 84% vs 54%; operating margin 43.9% vs 15%; roe 92.6% vs 50.4%.

Is PEP's lead over LLY getting stronger or weaker?

PEP lead: Reversed — LLY led by 4 AIQ points 30 sessions ago; PEP now leads by 12. This is measured from 120 daily comparison snapshots between 2026-04-20 and 2026-09-01. The lead has changed hands 8 times in that window, most recently on 2026-08-26, when PEP moved ahead of LLY.

What would change the LLY vs PEP verdict?

The result is a state, not a forecast, so it changes when the underlying evidence changes. Concretely: LLY closes the Momentum gap — currently 36 points behind, the largest single contributor to PEP's edge; LLY's MACD Bearish Crossover resolves — a bearish momentum rule currently active against it; PEP starts generating bearish momentum or trend signals; a regime shift changes factor weighting — the composite weights Quality and Value at 30% each, so a rotation toward either would move the result most.

What do the current signals say about LLY and PEP?

LLY: 2 bullish / 1 bearish, conflicted. PEP: 0 bullish / 2 bearish / 1 neutral. A conflicted state means bullish and bearish rules are active on the same name at once — the technical evidence is not pointing one way, and a decision taken on it carries more timing risk. The most decision-relevant rule on LLY is Golden Cross Active (bullish, long horizon). On PEP it is Death Cross Active (bearish, long horizon).

Compare LLY and PEP with others

How this comparison is scored

The Algovestiq AIQ Score composites four factors — Quality (30%), Value (30%), Momentum (25%) and Risk (15%). Sentiment is reported separately as SentimentPulse and is not folded into the composite. Scores refresh every trading day, and this page regenerates from the latest snapshot rather than being written once.

The verdict names a leader, states how broadly six independent evidence groups agree, and rates how durable that conclusion is given the score gap, its recent trajectory and the current signal state on both names.

How to use side-by-side comparison →

This comparison is informational and educational, not investment advice. AIQ scores update daily; re-check after earnings, guidance or macro data that materially changes either name’s factor profile.