Columbia Asset Management Sells 343 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Columbia Asset Management reduced its position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Free Report) by 4.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,729 shares of the company's stock after selling 343 shares during the quarter. Eli Lilly and Company makes up about 1.2% of Columbia Asset Management's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Columbia Asset Management's holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $6,383,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. FWG Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. FWG Holdings LLC now owns 2,023 shares of the company's stock worth $1,640,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Morling Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. Morling Financial Advisors LLC now owns 266 shares of the company's stock worth $205,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 606 shares of the company's stock worth $468,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 855 shares of the company's stock worth $660,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares during the period. Finally, Garner Asset Management Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp now owns 532 shares of the company's stock worth $411,000 after buying an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of LLY traded up $4.32 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $770.00. The stock had a trading volume of 2,068,266 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,655,041. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1 year low of $677.09 and a 1 year high of $972.53. The firm has a market cap of $729.76 billion, a PE ratio of 65.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.97. The stock's 50 day moving average is $770.87 and its 200 day moving average is $800.63.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The company reported $3.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.64 by ($1.30). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 85.24%. The firm had revenue of $12.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $12.77 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.58 EPS. The company's revenue was up 45.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.78%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Eli Lilly and Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on LLY shares. Hsbc Global Res downgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "moderate sell" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $892.00 to $888.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,100.00 to $1,050.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,011.37.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $818.24, for a total value of $818,240.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 5,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,778,521.60. This represents a 14.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through 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.