Redmond Asset Management LLC Acquires New Shares in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Redmond Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 1,342 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,036,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,090,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,089,563,000 after acquiring an additional 85,823 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,115,504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,417,970,000 after purchasing an additional 157,741 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,058,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,481,175,000 after purchasing an additional 169,391 shares in the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,954,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,731,168,000 after purchasing an additional 12,044 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service increased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 15.2% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,544,484 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,368,320,000 after purchasing an additional 204,243 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

LLY opened at $874.12 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $801.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $847.13. The firm has a market cap of $828.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.65, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.42. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1 year low of $711.40 and a 1 year high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share 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%. As a group, analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.24%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays dropped their target price 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, Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,000.28.

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.