Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading Down 0.2% – Here’s What Happened

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) shares dropped 0.2% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $791.50 and last traded at $794.01. Approximately 347,125 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 3,221,980 shares. The stock had previously closed at $795.67.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LLY has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on 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. StockNews.com lowered Eli Lilly and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Barclays lowered 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. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $806.31 and a 200-day moving average of $867.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $743.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 84.67, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its 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 company had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 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 dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.77%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 64.86%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Eli Lilly and Company

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter worth $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. LGT Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 45.5% in the 2nd quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 48 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.