Essex Financial Services Inc. Sells 78 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Essex Financial Services Inc. decreased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 26,029 shares of the company’s stock after selling 78 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company comprises about 1.4% of Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $20,095,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 45 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 53.3% during the third quarter. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 46 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its holdings 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 worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 24,879 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. StockNews.com raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price objective on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.50.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:LLY opened at $865.13 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $791.24 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $843.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $821.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 73.88, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $711.40 and a 52-week high of $972.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.27.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 86.26% and a net margin of 23.51%. Analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.50 per share. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is presently 44.41%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Eli Lilly and 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.