Latitude Advisors LLC Sells 44 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Latitude Advisors LLC lessened its position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 3.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,253 shares of the company’s stock after selling 44 shares during the period. Latitude Advisors LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $967,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% during the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 24,879 shares during the period. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $50,000. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Shares of LLY stock opened at $872.98 on Thursday. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1 year low of $711.40 and a 1 year high of $972.53. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $792.27 and its 200-day moving average is $843.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $828.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.55, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its 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 86.26% and a net margin of 23.51%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 44.41%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on LLY shares. 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. 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 report on Tuesday, January 28th. Bank of America reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $997.50.

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.