Abel Hall LLC Trims Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Abel Hall LLC reduced its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 972 shares of the company’s stock after selling 68 shares during the period. Abel Hall LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $750,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter worth $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of 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 shares of 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 acquiring an additional 16 shares in 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 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.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of LLY opened at $811.61 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $770.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 87.74, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 0.41. 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 has a one year low of $637.00 and a one year high of $972.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $782.29 and a 200 day moving average of $845.82.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 EPS 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 business had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.10 EPS. Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.85 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.22%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. 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. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Redburn Atlantic raised Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price target for the company. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $997.22.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $4,402,522.40. This represents a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 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.