Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Up 2% – What’s Next?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) rose 2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $916.41 and last traded at $919.70. Approximately 936,303 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 3,701,334 shares. The stock had previously closed at $901.80.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LLY has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup cut their price objective 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. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays decreased their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,000.28.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $861.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 77.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $805.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $847.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid a $1.50 dividend. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.66%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.24%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter worth about $8,407,908,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 100,387.1% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,202,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,016,110,000 after purchasing an additional 5,197,038 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 19.0% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,625,925 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,747,214,000 after buying an additional 2,012,129 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,730,758 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,740,272,000 after acquiring an additional 1,645,222 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the fourth quarter worth $1,240,653,000. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eli Lilly and Company 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.