Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Acquired by Kesler Norman & Wride LLC

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC boosted its position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 18.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 4,774 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 760 shares during the quarter. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $3,685,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,407,908,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 100,387.1% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,202,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,016,110,000 after acquiring an additional 5,197,038 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 19.0% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,625,925 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,747,214,000 after acquiring an additional 2,012,129 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter worth $1,240,653,000. Finally, Parnassus Investments LLC increased its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 38,959.8% in the 4th quarter. Parnassus Investments LLC now owns 934,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $721,590,000 after purchasing an additional 932,309 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $818.24, for a total transaction of $818,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,778,521.60. This represents a 14.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LLY. Morgan Stanley set a $1,146.00 target price on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup dropped their price objective 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. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted 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 report on Monday, February 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,009.72.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Down 2.7 %

NYSE LLY opened at $803.70 on Wednesday. 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 has a one year low of $711.40 and a one year high of $972.53. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $847.53 and a 200-day simple moving average of $834.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $762.04 billion, a PE ratio of 68.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.34.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. 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 has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication 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.