PFG Investments LLC Grows Stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

PFG Investments LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 16.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,834 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,262 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $6,820,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter worth about $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% during the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 24,879 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on LLY. Citigroup dropped 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 report on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of 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. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $997.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

NYSE LLY opened at $804.87 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $778.30 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $847.30. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12-month low of $637.00 and a 12-month high of $972.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $764.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 87.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. 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 yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is currently 56.22%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to buyback $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total value of $723,042.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.