Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading Up 1.7% – Still a Buy?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) shot up 1.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $792.56 and last traded at $786.15. 3,476,307 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 18% from the average session volume of 2,956,768 shares. The stock had previously closed at $773.29.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LLY. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective 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 report on Monday, November 4th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price target for the company. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective on the stock. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 1.5 %

The firm has a market cap of $758.87 billion, a PE ratio of 86.42, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41. 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 business has a 50-day moving average price of $786.08 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $860.02.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.52 by ($0.34). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 20.48% and a return on equity of 71.08%. The business had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.10 EPS. Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. 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 dividend yield of 0.75%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.86%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eli Lilly and Company

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 87,091.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 12,463,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,041,631,000 after buying an additional 12,448,888 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 92,759.9% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,022,388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $905,774,000 after buying an additional 1,021,287 shares during the period. Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 90,438.0% in the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 937,068 shares of the company’s stock valued at $848,403,000 after purchasing an additional 936,033 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 37,140.7% in the third quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 694,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $614,990,000 after acquiring an additional 692,303 shares during the period. Finally, Comerica Bank grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 71.6% in the second quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 1,512,983 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,369,825,000 after acquiring an additional 631,312 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.