Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. Makes New Investment in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 1,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $899,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter worth $30,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its position in 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 acquiring an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 24,879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter worth $58,000. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

LLY traded down $18.20 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $763.78. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,930,242 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,174,059. The stock has a market cap of $725.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 82.57, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a twelve month low of $609.59 and a twelve month high of $972.53. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $793.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $863.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.79%. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is 64.86%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to buyback $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on LLY shares. Barclays lowered their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,002.22.

Insider Transactions at Eli Lilly and Company

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total value of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. This trade represents a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.