Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Down 0.1% – What’s Next?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)’s stock price was down 0.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $772.99 and last traded at $781.50. Approximately 907,045 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 3,195,573 shares. The stock had previously closed at $782.35.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on LLY shares. Truist Financial upped their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $1,106.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,050.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $749.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 85.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $833.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $871.09.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by ($0.34). The company had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.10 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change 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 0.76%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.22%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has approved 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 repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Eli Lilly and Company

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares in the company, valued at $4,402,522.40. This represents a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 512 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. now owns 2,105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,865,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 2,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,136,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. now owns 1,687 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,527,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, O Brien Greene & Co. Inc lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc now owns 955 shares of the company’s stock valued at $865,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.