Spartan Planning & Wealth Management Acquires New Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 744 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $574,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of 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 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% during the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at about $58,000. Finally, Hara Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $58,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com raised Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 1st. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $885.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Monday, September 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,050.00 to $1,100.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. Finally, Barclays dropped 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. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,002.22.

Insider Transactions at Eli Lilly and Company

In related news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now 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 SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

NYSE:LLY traded up $10.13 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $775.23. 2,104,285 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,447,559. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1-year low of $609.59 and a 1-year high of $972.53. The business has a 50 day moving average of $791.18 and a 200 day moving average of $862.49. 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 capitalization of $735.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 83.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.10 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast 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 issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.77%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is 64.86%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Eli Lilly and 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.