Sanctuary Advisors LLC Sells 11,428 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 235,597 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,428 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company makes up about 1.2% of Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $193,951,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 113.7% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 331,786 shares of the company’s stock valued at $293,964,000 after acquiring an additional 176,552 shares during the period. Values Added Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Values Added Financial LLC now owns 366 shares of the company’s stock valued at $324,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares during the period. New Century Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 39.9% during the third quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 3,057 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,709,000 after acquiring an additional 872 shares in the last quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc. grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.4% in the third quarter. Means Investment CO. Inc. now owns 3,016 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,672,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 35.1% in the third quarter. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LLY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com raised Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price on the stock. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Down 3.1 %

LLY stock opened at $844.82 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap 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. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $794.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $845.27. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1-year low of $711.40 and a 1-year high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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%. 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.71%. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is currently 44.41%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors 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.