Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. Takes Position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Halter Ferguson Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 12,057 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,028,000. Eli Lilly and Company comprises about 4.5% of Halter Ferguson Financial Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 48.1% during the third quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 3,883 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,086,000 after buying an additional 1,261 shares during the last quarter. Lincoln National Corp raised its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 10.0% in the third quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 14,797 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,948,000 after buying an additional 1,351 shares during the period. Black Swift Group LLC raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 199.1% during the 3rd quarter. Black Swift Group LLC now owns 8,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,297,000 after purchasing an additional 5,325 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 49.4% during the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 622,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $334,100,000 after purchasing an additional 205,704 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 474,940 shares of the company’s stock worth $255,105,000 after acquiring an additional 18,079 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

LLY traded down $1.02 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $807.43. 1,758,200 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,993,735. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52 week low of $419.80 and a 52 week high of $820.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $767.39 billion, a PE ratio of 119.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The company’s 50-day moving average is $764.43 and its 200 day moving average is $690.85.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.05. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 56.98% and a net margin of 17.08%. The company had revenue of $8.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.94 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.62 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue was up 26.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.78 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on LLY. DZ Bank downgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $820.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $650.00 to $723.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Citigroup increased their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $675.00 to $895.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $805.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $850.00 to $892.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $769.53.

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.