Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Free Report) by 39.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,029 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 852 shares during the quarter. Lebenthal Global Advisors LLC's holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $2,338,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% in 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. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% during the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 24,879 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Eli Lilly and Company

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the business's 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 completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,480 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. The trade was a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

LLY traded up $19.51 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $823.59. The stock had a trading volume of 2,641,691 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,922,107. The stock has a market cap of $781.85 billion, a PE ratio of 89.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1 year low of $637.00 and a 1 year high of $972.53. 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 company's fifty day simple moving average is $780.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $845.98.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) 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 net margin of 20.48% and a return on equity of 71.08%. The company had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.10 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership 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 given 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on LLY shares. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $1,100.00 price target on the stock. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Bank of America reissued a "buy" rating and set a $997.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $1,000.00 target price on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $997.22.

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.