Wealth Quarterback LLC Decreases Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Wealth Quarterback LLC cut its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 35.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,111 shares of the company’s stock after selling 606 shares during the period. Wealth Quarterback LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $857,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 24,879 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc purchased a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Up 1.6 %

LLY opened at $857.38 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $795.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $845.36. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52 week low of $711.40 and a 52 week high of $972.53. The company has a market capitalization of $813.93 billion, a PE ratio of 73.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 86.26%. Analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.70%. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.24%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LLY. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $997.50.

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.