Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Stock Price Down 0.4% – What’s Next?

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) were down 0.4% on Friday . The stock traded as low as $711.98 and last traded at $718.00. Approximately 809,465 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 3,365,092 shares. The stock had previously closed at $720.91.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LLY has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Leerink Partners set a $950.00 target price on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $892.00 to $888.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $970.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup cut 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 research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,146.00 to $1,124.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,017.67.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

The business’s 50-day moving average is $838.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $824.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The company has a market capitalization of $691.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.51.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 85.24% and a net margin of 23.51%. As a group, analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 1,000 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $818.24, for a total value of $818,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,840 shares in the company, valued at $4,778,521.60. This trade represents a 14.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Eli Lilly and Company

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LLY. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 103,831.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,866,380 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,278,292,000 after acquiring an additional 14,852,076 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the fourth quarter worth about $8,407,908,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 100,387.1% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,202,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,016,110,000 after purchasing an additional 5,197,038 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 19.0% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,625,925 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,747,214,000 after buying an additional 2,012,129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 23.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,730,758 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,740,272,000 after buying an additional 1,645,222 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

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.