Sarasin & Partners LLP Buys 15,260 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Sarasin & Partners LLP raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 255,495 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 15,260 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company makes up approximately 2.2% of Sarasin & Partners LLP’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Sarasin & Partners LLP’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $197,242,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter valued at $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% during the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% during the 3rd quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 24,879 shares in the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Eli Lilly and Company

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total value of $723,042.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,402,522.40. This trade represents a 14.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of LLY stock opened at $741.98 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $704.38 billion, a PE ratio of 80.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 0.41. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $779.00 and a 200-day moving average of $852.83. 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 has a one year low of $614.82 and a one year high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $11.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.10 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side 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 initiated a stock repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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 paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.81%. This is a boost from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 56.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 target price for the company. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,060.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.