Black Diamond Financial LLC Acquires 661 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Black Diamond Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 42.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,210 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 661 shares during the period. Black Diamond Financial LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $1,706,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LLY. Inscription Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.0% in the third quarter. Inscription Capital LLC now owns 1,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,083,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 532 shares of the company’s stock worth $411,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.3% in the third quarter. Boston Financial Mangement LLC now owns 5,020 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,447,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Key Financial Inc grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.5% in the third quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 883 shares of the company’s stock worth $782,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.0% in the third quarter. Shoker Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 679 shares of the company’s stock worth $602,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup cut their target price 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 report on Tuesday, January 28th. 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. StockNews.com raised Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,000.28.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

LLY opened at $874.12 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $801.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $847.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market cap of $828.82 billion, a PE ratio of 74.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.42. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1 year low of $711.40 and a 1 year high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. Sell-side analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. 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. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.