Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC Sells 4,209 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC lowered its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 4.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 85,376 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,209 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company makes up 4.0% of Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Moody Lynn & Lieberson LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $65,910,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. grew its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% during the third quarter. Summit Financial Strategies Inc. now owns 2,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,865,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Prio Wealth Limited Partnership now owns 2,411 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,136,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. First Community Trust NA raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. First Community Trust NA now owns 257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $228,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Hummer Financial Advisory Services Inc lifted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hummer Financial Advisory Services Inc now owns 1,271 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,126,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the last quarter. Finally, James Hambro & Partners LLP grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 3.7% during the third quarter. James Hambro & Partners LLP now owns 340 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were 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 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $808.16 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $767.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 87.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a one year low of $637.00 and a one year high of $972.53. The business has a fifty day moving average of $776.69 and a two-hundred day moving average of $848.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.27.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 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 analysts’ expectations of $12.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.10 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on LLY shares. Wolfe Research began coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 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 company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price objective for the company. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,002.22.

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.