Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Receives $1,002.22 Average Target Price from Analysts

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seventeen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $1,002.22.

Several research firms have weighed in on LLY. Barclays dropped 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 report on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price target for the company. Redburn Atlantic raised Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on 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.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total value of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. This represents a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Eli Lilly and Company

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter valued at $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter worth about $30,000. LGT Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 24,879 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Shares of LLY opened at $781.98 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $793.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $863.35. The stock has a market cap of $742.35 billion, a PE ratio of 84.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1-year low of $609.59 and a 1-year high of $972.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.34). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 20.48% and a return on equity of 71.08%. The company had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. 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 0.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.86%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is 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.