Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Stock Position Lifted by Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC

Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 11.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 911 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 95 shares during the period. Ridgecrest Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $703,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LLY. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter worth $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% in the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% in the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter valued at $58,000. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently weighed in on LLY. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wolfe Research started 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. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.22.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

LLY opened at $803.01 on Thursday. 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 cap of $762.31 billion, a PE ratio of 86.81, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $779.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $846.28. Eli Lilly and Company has a fifty-two week low of $637.00 and a fifty-two week high of $972.53.

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). The company had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 20.48% and a return on equity of 71.08%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.10 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.50 dividend. 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 56.22%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Eli Lilly and 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.