Atwood & Palmer Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Atwood & Palmer Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 532 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Atwood & Palmer Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $411,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Beck Bode LLC purchased a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the 2nd quarter valued at $15,036,000. Sfmg LLC lifted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 5.8% in the second quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 3,219 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,915,000 after buying an additional 177 shares during the period. Royal Capital Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Royal Capital Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,869 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,502,000 after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the period. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 14.9% in the 2nd quarter. Insigneo Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,338,000 after purchasing an additional 908 shares during the period. Finally, Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 8.7% in the second quarter. Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 9,274 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,396,000 after purchasing an additional 744 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LLY opened at $753.65 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $777.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $851.61. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $614.82 and a 52-week high of $972.53. The company has a market cap of $715.46 billion, a PE ratio of 81.48, a PEG ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.41. 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 (NYSE:LLY) last issued 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). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. The company had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.10 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.80%. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 56.22%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LLY has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price objective for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,002.22.

Insider Activity at Eli Lilly and Company

In related news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 approximately $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Eli Lilly and Company

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.