WealthShield Partners LLC Reduces Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

WealthShield Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 18.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,981 shares of the company’s stock after selling 677 shares during the quarter. WealthShield Partners LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $2,301,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also 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% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 6,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,245,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares in the last quarter. Centerpoint Advisory Group bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $514,000. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% in the 3rd 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 bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 4th quarter worth approximately $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 acquiring an additional 695 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on LLY. Wolfe Research began 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 objective for the company. Redburn Atlantic raised Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup reduced 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 report on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America reaffirmed 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. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $970.00 price objective on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,000.28.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

LLY stock opened at $874.12 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $828.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 74.65, a price-to-earnings-growth 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. 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 fifty day moving average price is $801.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $847.66.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 85.24% and a net margin of 23.51%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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 $1.50 dividend. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.24%.

Eli Lilly and Company 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.