Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading 1.3% Higher – Still a Buy?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)’s stock price rose 1.3% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $783.96 and last traded at $774.86. Approximately 1,252,759 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 43% from the average daily volume of 2,202,437 shares. The stock had previously closed at $765.10.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on LLY shares. Barclays decreased 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 report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com raised Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 1st. Bank of America reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of 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. Finally, Truist Financial upped their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $1,033.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 1.1 %

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $791.18 and a 200-day simple moving average of $862.49. 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 stock has a market cap of $734.23 billion, a PE ratio of 83.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued 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). 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.78%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.86%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eli Lilly and Company

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total value of $723,042.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Eli Lilly and Company

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter worth about $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% during the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% in the third 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 period. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the third quarter worth $58,000. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

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.