Ieq Capital LLC Raises Stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Ieq Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 66,784 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,595 shares during the quarter. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $51,557,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 6,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,245,000 after buying an additional 724 shares in the last quarter. Centerpoint Advisory Group purchased a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the fourth quarter worth $514,000. M&T Bank Corp grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 266,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,389,000 after acquiring an additional 1,867 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the fourth quarter valued at $834,000. Finally, Cooper Financial Group raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 35.5% in the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 2,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,050,000 after purchasing an additional 695 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on LLY. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays decreased 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 report on Thursday, October 31st. Truist Financial increased their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LLY opened at $873.77 on Friday. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12-month low of $711.40 and a 12-month high of $972.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $829.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.42. 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 firm has a 50 day moving average of $799.63 and a 200 day moving average of $846.07.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.50 dividend. 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. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 51.24%.

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