Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC Invests $17.26 Million in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 22,354 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,257,000. Eli Lilly and Company comprises approximately 5.0% of Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LLY. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 20,181 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,272,000 after acquiring an additional 558 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.9% during the second quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,211 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,718,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.4% in the second quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 694,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $628,388,000 after purchasing an additional 2,681 shares in the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 5.7% in the second quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 26,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,017,000 after buying an additional 1,427 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tredje AP fonden raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 4.6% during the second quarter. Tredje AP fonden now owns 229,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $207,597,000 after buying an additional 10,000 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LLY has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered 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 research note on Monday, November 4th. Citigroup raised their price target 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 report on Friday, October 25th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 target price on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,002.22.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:LLY opened at $746.42 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $784.63 and a 200-day moving average of $857.48. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The firm has a market cap of $708.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 80.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a twelve month low of $612.70 and a twelve month high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $11.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.10 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.80%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.86%.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $803.38, for a total transaction of $723,042.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,402,522.40. This represents a 14.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.