Vista Investment Partners LLC Has $3.67 Million Stock Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Vista Investment Partners LLC reduced its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 4,748 shares of the company’s stock after selling 157 shares during the quarter. Vista Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $3,665,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. CWA Asset Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 6,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,245,000 after purchasing an additional 724 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 266,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,389,000 after purchasing an additional 1,867 shares in the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 35.5% during the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 2,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,050,000 after purchasing an additional 695 shares in the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,340 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,246,000 after purchasing an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs & Co. CA grew its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 35.2% during the 4th quarter. Jacobs & Co. CA now owns 29,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $22,690,000 after purchasing an additional 7,646 shares in the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 2.9 %

NYSE LLY opened at $808.16 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $776.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $848.19. Eli Lilly and Company has a one year low of $637.00 and a one year high of $972.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $767.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 87.37, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.97.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released 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 business had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eli Lilly and Company

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,402,522.40. This trade represents a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on LLY shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped 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. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 target price for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,002.22.

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.