Lakeside Advisors INC. Cuts Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Lakeside Advisors INC. decreased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 26.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 477 shares of the company’s stock after selling 175 shares during the period. Lakeside Advisors INC.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $368,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LLY. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 113.7% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 331,786 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,964,000 after purchasing an additional 176,552 shares in the last quarter. Values Added Financial LLC lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 4.9% in the third quarter. Values Added Financial LLC now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock worth $324,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the last quarter. GAM Holding AG boosted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 55.3% during the third quarter. GAM Holding AG now owns 29,978 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,559,000 after buying an additional 10,677 shares during the period. Liberty Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 5.7% during the third quarter. Liberty Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,905,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global X Japan Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 10.6% during the third quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 2,614 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,316,000 after buying an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of LLY opened at $873.77 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $799.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $846.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $829.49 billion, a PE ratio of 74.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.42. Eli Lilly and Company has a one year low of $711.40 and a one year high of $972.53.

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 net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 86.26%. On average, analysts anticipate 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 share repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LLY shares. Truist Financial boosted their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price on the stock. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company 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.