Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading Down 0.6% – What’s Next?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) was down 0.6% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $772.55 and last traded at $777.00. Approximately 853,460 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 42% from the average daily volume of 1,468,521 shares. The stock had previously closed at $781.98.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on LLY shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,050.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on 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. Barclays cut their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price objective for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 1.7 %

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 capitalization of $746.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 84.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $788.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $861.70.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) 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 return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.10 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 64.86%.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 6,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,245,000 after purchasing an additional 724 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp increased its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 266,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,389,000 after acquiring an additional 1,867 shares in the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,246,000 after buying an additional 690 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 13.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,154,350 shares of the company’s stock valued at $887,014,000 after purchasing an additional 138,835 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $899,000. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

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.