Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC Cuts Stock Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 14.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 312 shares of the company’s stock after selling 51 shares during the quarter. Clarity Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $241,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,090,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,089,563,000 after acquiring an additional 85,823 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 87,091.7% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 12,463,182 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,041,631,000 after purchasing an additional 12,448,888 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,115,504 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,417,970,000 after purchasing an additional 157,741 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,058,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,481,175,000 after purchasing an additional 169,391 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,954,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,731,168,000 after buying an additional 12,044 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on LLY shares. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup cut their target price on 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, January 28th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of LLY stock opened at $878.09 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $833.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.99, a PEG 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. 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 company’s 50 day moving average is $789.87 and its 200 day moving average is $843.55.

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 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. 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 dividend yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.41%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is 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.