Intellectus Partners LLC Increases Stock Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Intellectus Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 153.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,077 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 652 shares during the quarter. Intellectus Partners LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $832,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in LLY. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter worth approximately $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% in the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 24,879 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 358.3% in the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 55 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Down 4.8 %

Shares of LLY opened at $868.59 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $826.63 and its 200 day moving average is $847.97. Eli Lilly and Company has a fifty-two week low of $711.40 and a fifty-two week high of $972.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $823.57 billion, a PE ratio of 74.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.15.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced 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 85.24% and a net margin of 23.51%. Sell-side analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. This is a positive change 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 payout ratio is presently 51.24%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on LLY shares. Leerink Partners set a $950.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of 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. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $970.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,007.50.

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.