Kennedy Investment Group Increases Stock Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Kennedy Investment Group increased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 22.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,549 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 472 shares during the quarter. Eli Lilly and Company comprises approximately 0.9% of Kennedy Investment Group’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Kennedy Investment Group’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $1,968,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 6,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,245,000 after buying an additional 724 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 266,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,389,000 after acquiring an additional 1,867 shares during the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 35.5% in the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 2,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,050,000 after purchasing an additional 695 shares during the period. Everence Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,340 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,246,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs & Co. CA grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 35.2% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs & Co. CA now owns 29,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,690,000 after purchasing an additional 7,646 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on LLY shares. StockNews.com cut shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price 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. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price objective on the stock. Citigroup lowered their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial raised their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $997.22.

Insider Transactions at Eli Lilly and Company

In related news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $823.59 on Friday. 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 12 month low of $637.00 and a 12 month high of $972.53. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $780.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $845.98. The company has a market cap of $781.85 billion, a PE ratio of 89.04, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly 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 business 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%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 56.22%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.