Goelzer Investment Management Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Goelzer Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 547,438 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company accounts for 24.5% of Goelzer Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its largest position. Goelzer Investment Management Inc. owned 0.06% of Eli Lilly and Company worth $422,622,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,090,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,089,563,000 after purchasing an additional 85,823 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 87,091.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 12,463,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,041,631,000 after buying an additional 12,448,888 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,115,504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,417,970,000 after buying an additional 157,741 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 3.5% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,058,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,481,175,000 after buying an additional 169,391 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,954,047 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,731,168,000 after acquiring an additional 12,044 shares in the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total value of $723,042.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,480 shares in the company, valued at $4,402,522.40. This trade represents a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $784.78 on Monday. Eli Lilly and Company has a fifty-two week low of $624.68 and a fifty-two week high of $972.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.27. The company has a market cap of $745.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 84.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $776.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $848.83.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by ($0.34). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. The business had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.10 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 56.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on LLY shares. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price objective for the company. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Company Profile

Eli Lilly and Company discovers, develops, and markets human pharmaceuticals worldwide. The company offers Basaglar, Humalog, Humalog Mix 75/25, Humalog U-100, Humalog U-200, Humalog Mix 50/50, insulin lispro, insulin lispro protamine, insulin lispro mix 75/25, Humulin, Humulin 70/30, Humulin N, Humulin R, and Humulin U-500 for diabetes; Jardiance, Mounjaro, and Trulicity for type 2 diabetes; and Zepbound for obesity.