Bristlecone Advisors LLC Trims Stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Bristlecone Advisors LLC cut its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 7.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,071 shares of the company’s stock after selling 161 shares during the quarter. Bristlecone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $1,599,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 6,794 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,245,000 after purchasing an additional 724 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 266,822 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,389,000 after buying an additional 1,867 shares during the period. Cooper Financial Group lifted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 35.5% during the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 2,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,050,000 after buying an additional 695 shares in the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,340 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,246,000 after buying an additional 690 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jacobs & Co. CA grew its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 35.2% in the 4th quarter. Jacobs & Co. CA now owns 29,391 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,690,000 after acquiring an additional 7,646 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of LLY opened at $865.13 on Wednesday. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12-month low of $711.40 and a 12-month high of $972.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $821.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 73.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $791.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $843.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 EPS for the current year.

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 given a $1.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is currently 44.41%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to buyback $15.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on LLY. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective for the company. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Barclays reduced their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $975.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.