Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Sold by New Century Financial Group LLC

New Century Financial Group LLC lessened its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 7.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,823 shares of the company’s stock after selling 234 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company comprises approximately 0.9% of New Century Financial Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. New Century Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $2,207,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,090,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,089,563,000 after purchasing an additional 85,823 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 87,091.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 12,463,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,041,631,000 after acquiring an additional 12,448,888 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,115,504 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,417,970,000 after acquiring an additional 157,741 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 3.5% in the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,058,101 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,481,175,000 after acquiring an additional 169,391 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,954,047 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,731,168,000 after purchasing an additional 12,044 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on LLY shares. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price target on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, 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 target price on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,002.22.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares in the company, valued at $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 2.4 %

NYSE LLY opened at $784.78 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $776.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $849.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a one year low of $624.68 and a one year high of $972.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.27. The firm has a market cap of $745.01 billion, a PE ratio of 84.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly 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). The company had revenue of $11.44 billion for 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 EPS. Analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 earnings per share 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 is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.22%.

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

Eli Lilly and Company 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.