Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Purchased by Zhang Financial LLC

Zhang Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 41.2% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,551 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 744 shares during the quarter. Zhang Financial LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $1,969,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings 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 in the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% in the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 24,879 shares in the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares in the company, 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on LLY. Barclays decreased their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 1st. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LLY opened at $741.98 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $704.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.21, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $779.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $852.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.27 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.34). The business had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.09 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 20.48% and a return on equity of 71.08%. The firm’s revenue was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.10 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 56.22%.

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.