Covington Investment Advisors Inc. Increases Stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Covington Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 0.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,629 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the quarter. Eli Lilly and Company makes up about 2.7% of Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Covington Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $18,276,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 87,091.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 12,463,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,041,631,000 after acquiring an additional 12,448,888 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 3.5% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,058,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,481,175,000 after acquiring an additional 169,391 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 5.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,581,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,242,296,000 after acquiring an additional 171,595 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,027,901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,741,832,000 after acquiring an additional 22,392 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,069,881 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,874,029,000 after purchasing an additional 100,426 shares in the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

NYSE LLY opened at $755.00 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12-month low of $561.65 and a 12-month high of $972.53. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $861.63 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $870.20. The company has a market capitalization of $716.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 81.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.43.

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%. Eli Lilly and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on LLY. Evercore ISI raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $875.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price 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 report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $885.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,007.94.

Insider Activity at Eli Lilly and Company

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction 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 $4,402,522.40. This represents a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.