Fmr LLC Sells 2,501,172 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Fmr LLC cut its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 7.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 30,535,248 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,501,172 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company accounts for about 1.4% of Fmr LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Fmr LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $23,573,212,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LLY. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD increased its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 891.6% during the 4th quarter. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD now owns 4,958 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,828,000 after purchasing an additional 4,458 shares during the last quarter. Edgewood Management LLC grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 2,547,982 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,967,042,000 after purchasing an additional 292,150 shares during the period. Titleist Asset Management LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Titleist Asset Management LLC now owns 511 shares of the company’s stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 74,119 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,221,000 after buying an additional 492 shares during the period. Finally, MIG Capital LLC raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 220.4% in the fourth quarter. MIG Capital LLC now owns 65,936 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,903,000 after buying an additional 45,355 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on LLY. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $970.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Leerink Partners set a $950.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Truist Financial upped their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley set a $1,146.00 target price on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Berenberg Bank set a $970.00 price target on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,009.72.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $818.24, for a total transaction of $818,240.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,840 shares in the company, valued at $4,778,521.60. This trade represents a 14.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $737.56 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The company has a market cap of $699.33 billion, a PE ratio of 62.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a 50 day moving average of $848.36 and a 200-day moving average of $831.93. 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 net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 85.24%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to buyback $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign 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.