Simmons Bank Sells 295 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Simmons Bank reduced its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 8,114 shares of the company’s stock after selling 295 shares during the quarter. Simmons Bank’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $6,264,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 724 shares during the last quarter. Centerpoint Advisory Group acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $514,000. M&T Bank Corp increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% during 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 in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the fourth quarter worth $834,000. Finally, Cooper Financial Group raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 35.5% during the fourth quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 2,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,050,000 after acquiring an additional 695 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on LLY shares. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup cut their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced 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 report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Leerink Partners set a $950.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,000.28.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE:LLY opened at $902.47 on Wednesday. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $711.40 and a 52-week high of $972.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.15. The company has a market capitalization of $855.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 77.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $805.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $847.99.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 85.24%. Sell-side analysts forecast 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.66%. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 51.24%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has approved 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 buy up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.