Victory Capital Management Inc. Cuts Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Victory Capital Management Inc. reduced its position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 677,588 shares of the company’s stock after selling 19,747 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company accounts for about 0.5% of Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $523,098,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 80.0% during the 4th 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. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 117.1% during the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 46,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 24,879 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. grew its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 358.3% during the 4th quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 55 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,000.00 to $970.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. 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 objective on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,029.00 to $1,038.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,000.28.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE LLY opened at $930.22 on Tuesday. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1 year low of $711.40 and a 1 year high of $972.53. The firm has a market cap of $882.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 79.44, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.15. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $817.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $848.11.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 85.24%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.65%. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is currently 51.24%.

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.