Opinicus Capital Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Opinicus Capital Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,624 shares of the company’s stock after selling 83 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company comprises approximately 2.4% of Opinicus Capital Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 10th largest position. Opinicus Capital Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $2,797,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% in the 3rd quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 24,879 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on LLY. Barclays dropped their price objective 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. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target 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, January 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of LLY opened at $878.09 on Monday. 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 business has a fifty day moving average of $789.87 and a 200 day moving average of $843.31. The company has a market cap of $833.58 billion, a PE ratio of 74.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $711.40 and a 52-week high of $972.53.

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

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.68%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.24%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company 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.