Sterling Financial Planning Inc. Sells 39 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Sterling Financial Planning Inc. reduced its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 766 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39 shares during the period. Sterling Financial Planning Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of 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. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% in the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 24,879 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LLY has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lowered their price target on 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective 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 report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Up 1.1 %

LLY stock opened at $866.69 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $797.80 and a 200-day moving average of $845.87. Eli Lilly and Company has a fifty-two week low of $711.40 and a fifty-two week high of $972.53. The company has a market capitalization of $822.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.01, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.42. 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 issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 86.26% and a net margin of 23.51%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 51.24%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.