Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading Up 1.3% - Should You Buy?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 1.3% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $794.00 and last traded at $787.83. 752,333 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 79% from the average session volume of 3,656,125 shares. The stock had previously closed at $777.66.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $892.00 to $888.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $936.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, June 20th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Hsbc Global Res lowered shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,100.00 to $1,050.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,011.61.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 1.5%

The stock has a market cap of $757.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 64.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.14 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.37. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $767.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $800.05.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $3.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.64 by ($1.30). The business had revenue of $12.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $12.77 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 85.51% and a net margin of 22.67%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 45.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.58 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be given a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. Eli Lilly and Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.82%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Knightsbridge Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Knightsbridge Asset Management LLC now owns 813 shares of the company's stock valued at $628,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the period. LS Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.7% during the first quarter. LS Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,340 shares of the company's stock worth $1,933,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. CSM Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 30.6% during the fourth quarter. CSM Advisors LLC now owns 1,045 shares of the company's stock worth $807,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 30.2% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,739 shares of the company's stock worth $5,202,000 after purchasing an additional 1,562 shares during the period. Finally, Bfsg LLC lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.4% during the first quarter. Bfsg LLC now owns 2,959 shares of the company's stock worth $2,444,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.