Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. Acquires 42 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC. raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 1,048 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Astoria Portfolio Advisors LLC.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $781,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% in the 3rd 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. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com upgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 1st. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price target on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,002.22.

Insider Activity at Eli Lilly and Company

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total value of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Shares of LLY opened at $726.24 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $781.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $854.35. The company has a market capitalization of $689.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 78.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a fifty-two week low of $612.70 and a fifty-two week high of $972.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.27.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.34). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. The company had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company 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. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.83%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is currently 64.86%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership 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.