Ellis Investment Partners LLC Raises Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Ellis Investment Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 7.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,209 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the quarter. Ellis Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $933,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% during the 4th 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 period. 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 valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 24,879 shares during the period. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased 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 research report on Monday, November 4th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

LLY stock opened at $844.82 on Monday. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12 month low of $711.40 and a 12 month high of $972.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $794.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $844.98. The stock has a market cap of $802.01 billion, a PE ratio of 72.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 86.26% and a net margin of 23.51%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is currently 44.41%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

About Eli Lilly and Company

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.