Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Holdings Cut by Freedom Day Solutions LLC

Freedom Day Solutions LLC decreased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 1.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,709 shares of the company’s stock after selling 83 shares during the quarter. Eli Lilly and Company makes up about 1.1% of Freedom Day Solutions LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Freedom Day Solutions LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $3,635,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of LLY. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 87,091.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 12,463,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,041,631,000 after purchasing an additional 12,448,888 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 92,759.9% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,022,388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $905,774,000 after purchasing an additional 1,021,287 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 37,140.7% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 694,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $614,990,000 after purchasing an additional 692,303 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 126,531.5% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 678,745 shares of the company’s stock valued at $523,991,000 after buying an additional 678,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 100.7% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,165,696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,032,737,000 after buying an additional 584,866 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on LLY. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America reiterated 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. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $873.77 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.27. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $799.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $846.07. Eli Lilly and Company has a twelve month low of $711.40 and a twelve month high of $972.53. The firm has a market cap of $829.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 74.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.42.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 86.26%. As a group, research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.24%.

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.