Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Holdings Decreased by Kercheville Advisors LLC

Kercheville Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 3.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 8,213 shares of the company’s stock after selling 327 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company accounts for 2.5% of Kercheville Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Kercheville Advisors LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $6,340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 113.7% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 331,786 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,964,000 after purchasing an additional 176,552 shares during the last quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 5.9% during the 3rd quarter. Brendel Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,192 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,942,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the period. B & T Capital Management DBA Alpha Capital Management grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 748.9% during the 3rd quarter. B & T Capital Management DBA Alpha Capital Management now owns 3,073 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,722,000 after buying an additional 2,711 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.7% in the third quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 1,633 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,447,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Common Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 77.5% in the third quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC now owns 18,563 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,446,000 after buying an additional 8,106 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LLY has been the topic of several recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated 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. Citigroup lowered their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered 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 research note on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Shares of LLY opened at $878.09 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $788.21 and its 200-day moving average is $843.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The company has a market capitalization of $833.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 94.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.42. Eli Lilly and Company has a fifty-two week low of $711.40 and a fifty-two week high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. Equities research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.85 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.68%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is 56.22%.

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.