Stephens Consulting LLC Decreases Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Stephens Consulting LLC decreased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 45.7% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 101 shares of the company’s stock after selling 85 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $78,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of LLY. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% during the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in shares of 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 worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 24,879 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 2.1 %

LLY stock opened at $843.82 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $801.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 91.22, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.42. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $785.46 and a 200-day simple moving average of $843.28. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52 week low of $691.10 and a 52 week high of $972.53.

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

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. This represents a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LLY has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays cut their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com downgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.50.

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.