Mason & Associates Inc Cuts Stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Mason & Associates Inc lessened its position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 1.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 907 shares of the company’s stock after selling 15 shares during the period. Mason & Associates Inc’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $700,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter worth $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted 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 in the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC grew its stake 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 period. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $58,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was 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 $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LLY opened at $758.70 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $784.03 and a 200-day simple moving average of $856.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The company has a market cap of $720.25 billion, a PE ratio of 82.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12 month low of $612.70 and a 12 month high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its 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). The firm had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $12.09 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 71.08% and a net margin of 20.48%. The firm’s revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently commented on LLY shares. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial upped their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America reaffirmed 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, Citigroup boosted their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,002.22.

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.