Empower Advisory Group LLC Grows Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Empower Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 38.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 193,486 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 54,212 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $149,371,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,090,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,089,563,000 after acquiring an additional 85,823 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 87,091.7% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 12,463,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,041,631,000 after buying an additional 12,448,888 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% during the 3rd 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 buying an additional 157,741 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 5,058,101 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,481,175,000 after buying an additional 169,391 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,954,047 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,731,168,000 after buying an additional 12,044 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LLY has been the topic of several recent research reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $857.38 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $795.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $845.36. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12-month low of $711.40 and a 12-month high of $972.53. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The stock has a market cap of $813.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.22, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 86.26%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.24%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced 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 reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.