Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading Down 0.3% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) were down 0.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $772.43 and last traded at $776.62. Approximately 983,565 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 3,196,614 shares. The stock had previously closed at $779.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on LLY. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $885.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Monday, September 16th. Evercore ISI raised Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Barclays lowered their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Redburn Atlantic raised Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Up 0.3 %

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $831.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $871.25. The company has a market cap of $741.69 billion, a PE ratio of 83.96, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.27.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued 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 return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. The company had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.10 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict 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 given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 64.86%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were 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 owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.2% in the second quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 512 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the third quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. now owns 2,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,865,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the third quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 2,411 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,136,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% in the second quarter. Thompson Davis & CO. Inc. now owns 1,687 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,527,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Finally, O Brien Greene & Co. Inc increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.3% in the second quarter. O Brien Greene & Co. Inc now owns 955 shares of the company’s stock worth $865,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

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.