Vontobel Holding Ltd. Raises Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 10.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 95,427 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,253 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $73,670,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership raised its position 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 buying an additional 11 shares during the period. James Hambro & Partners LLP raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. James Hambro & Partners LLP now owns 340 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the period. Inscription Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Inscription Capital LLC now owns 1,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,083,000 after buying an additional 12 shares during the period. Garner Asset Management Corp increased its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 532 shares of the company’s stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Detalus Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Detalus Advisors LLC now owns 798 shares of the company’s stock valued at $707,000 after purchasing an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on LLY shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LLY opened at $844.82 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $794.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $844.34. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $711.40 and a 52-week high of $972.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $802.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 72.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 86.26%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is 44.41%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management 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.