Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Sold by Ballast Inc.

Ballast Inc. reduced its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 2.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,246 shares of the company’s stock after selling 121 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company comprises about 0.9% of Ballast Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Ballast Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $3,278,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.2% in 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. lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. now owns 2,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,865,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 2,411 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,136,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. First Community Trust NA lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 257 shares of the company’s stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hummer Financial Advisory Services Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hummer Financial Advisory Services Inc now owns 1,271 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,126,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LLY has been the topic of several analyst reports. 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 research report on Thursday, October 31st. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. 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 report on Tuesday, December 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,002.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 transaction of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,480 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Down 4.1 %

Shares of LLY opened at $726.24 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $689.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 78.51, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.97. Eli Lilly and Company has a one year low of $612.70 and a one year high of $972.53. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $781.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $854.04.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. The firm had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.10 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. 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 yield of 0.83%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.22%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.