307 Shares in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Acquired by Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc.

Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 307 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $237,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LLY. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $283,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares in the last quarter. Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Canvas Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,512 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Liberty Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Liberty Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,250 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,737,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. LJI Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. LJI Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,131 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,505,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HTLF Bank increased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 7.3% in the fourth quarter. HTLF Bank now owns 828 shares of the company’s stock valued at $639,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of LLY stock opened at $865.13 on Wednesday. Eli Lilly and Company has a fifty-two week low of $711.40 and a fifty-two week high of $972.53. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $791.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $843.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market cap of $821.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.88, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 86.26% and a net margin of 23.51%. Analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.41%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on LLY. Wolfe Research started coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. 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 for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $997.50.

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.