Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seventeen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $997.22.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed 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 objective on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays dropped 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. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of 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.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the firm’s 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 in the company, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. This trade represents a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Eli Lilly and Company

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Opes Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 33.9% in the 4th quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC now owns 316 shares of the company’s stock worth $244,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Lee Financial Co lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Lee Financial Co now owns 2,417 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,866,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. VeraBank N.A. lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. VeraBank N.A. now owns 3,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,848,000 after purchasing an additional 23 shares during the period. MN Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. MN Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,156 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,665,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares during the period. Finally, Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 32,240 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,890,000 after purchasing an additional 230 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $823.59 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $781.85 billion, a PE ratio of 89.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $637.00 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 $780.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $845.98.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.10 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.22%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are 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.