Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Purchased by Level Financial Advisors

Level Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 18.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 423 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the quarter. Level Financial Advisors’ holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $327,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% in the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 24,879 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total value of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. This 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 can be accessed through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have weighed in on LLY. StockNews.com downgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 target price on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $803.01 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $779.81 and a 200-day moving average of $846.28. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $637.00 and a 52-week high of $972.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $762.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 86.81, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41.

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

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.22%.

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.