Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Up 1.9% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) were up 1.9% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $752.29 and last traded at $743.74. Approximately 1,428,609 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 55% from the average daily volume of 3,169,254 shares. The stock had previously closed at $729.73.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LLY has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $1,106.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. 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 report on Thursday, October 31st. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,001.00 to $1,101.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,007.94.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $868.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $869.14. The company has a market capitalization of $710.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.96, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.43.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.52 by ($0.34). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 20.48% and a return on equity of 71.08%. 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% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.69%. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.22%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Lynx Investment Advisory acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the second quarter worth about $32,000. LGT Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 45.5% during the 2nd quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 48 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company 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.