Wesbanco Bank Inc. Reduces Stock Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Wesbanco Bank Inc. decreased its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 6.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 24,022 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,776 shares during the period. Wesbanco Bank Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $18,545,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,090,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,089,563,000 after acquiring an additional 85,823 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 87,091.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 12,463,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,041,631,000 after purchasing an additional 12,448,888 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,115,504 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,417,970,000 after purchasing an additional 157,741 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,058,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,481,175,000 after purchasing an additional 169,391 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,954,047 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,731,168,000 after purchasing an additional 12,044 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LLY shares. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating 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 stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,002.22.

Insider Activity

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total value of $723,042.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. This represents a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $784.78 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $775.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $850.34. The firm has a market capitalization of $745.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 84.84, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12-month low of $624.68 and a 12-month high of $972.53. 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 released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share (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 analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 20.48% and a return on equity of 71.08%. Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.10 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s management 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.76%. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 64.86%.

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.