Vest Financial LLC Buys 453 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 13.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,788 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 453 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $2,924,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in 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 worth $15,089,563,000 after acquiring an additional 85,823 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position 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 valued at $11,041,631,000 after purchasing an additional 12,448,888 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% in 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 grew its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 12,044 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

LLY opened at $878.09 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $833.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.99, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $789.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $843.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $711.40 and a 52-week high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to buyback $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase 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 0.68%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.24%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays lowered their price target 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. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 target price for the company. Finally, Redburn Atlantic raised Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $997.50.

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.