Wall Street Financial Group Inc. Reduces Stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Wall Street Financial Group Inc. cut its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 49.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,787 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,766 shares during the quarter. Eli Lilly and Company makes up 2.1% of Wall Street Financial Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Wall Street Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $2,152,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% in the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its position in 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 purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 24,879 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Eli Lilly and Company

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 5,480 shares in the company, valued at $4,402,522.40. This trade represents a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

NYSE:LLY opened at $753.65 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $777.46 and a 200-day moving average of $851.61. The firm has a market cap of $715.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 81.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 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. Eli Lilly and Company has a twelve month low of $614.82 and a twelve month high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued 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 business had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.09 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.10 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has approved a share 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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 issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on LLY shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective 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 note on Monday, November 4th. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Redburn Atlantic raised Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,002.22.

About Eli Lilly and Company

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.