Board of the Pension Protection Fund Purchases Shares of 600 Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $463,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 512 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. raised its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% during the third quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. now owns 2,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,865,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the third quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 2,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,136,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc boosted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.3% in the second quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc now owns 955 shares of the company’s stock valued at $865,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tcwp LLC grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Tcwp LLC now owns 524 shares of the company’s stock worth $474,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LLY shares. Citigroup increased their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research started coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price for the company. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $746.42 on Thursday. 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 cap of $708.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $784.63 and its 200-day moving average is $857.48. Eli Lilly and Company has a one year low of $612.70 and a one year high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.34). The firm 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 company’s revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.10 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.86%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to buyback $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management 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 stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. This represents a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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.