Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Key Points

• Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 9.7%, acquiring an additional 4,982 shares, bringing their total to 56,261 shares valued at approximately $46.47 million.
• Several analysts have recently changed their ratings on Eli Lilly; for instance, HSBC downgraded the stock from "buy" to "reduce," while Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating with a slightly increased price target.
• Eli Lilly announced a quarterly dividend of $1.50, which translates to a 0.74% dividend yield, with the ex-dividend date set for August 15th.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its position in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Free Report) by 9.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 56,261 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,982 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $46,466,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 103,831.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,866,380 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,278,292,000 after buying an additional 14,852,076 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company in the 4th quarter valued at about $8,407,908,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 19.0% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,625,925 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,747,214,000 after acquiring an additional 2,012,129 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 23.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,730,758 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,740,272,000 after acquiring an additional 1,645,222 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 10,757,511 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,304,811,000 after acquiring an additional 1,493,673 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company's stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Up 0.3%

LLY traded up $2.36 on Monday, reaching $815.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,000,773 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,748,250. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $771.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $800.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.18. The company has a market capitalization of $772.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 0.40. Eli Lilly and Company has a fifty-two week low of $677.09 and a fifty-two week high of $972.53.

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

Eli Lilly and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Eli Lilly and Company's dividend payout ratio is currently 48.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on LLY shares. UBS Group dropped their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,100.00 to $1,050.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 2nd. Erste Group Bank downgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Eli Lilly and Company from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $892.00 to $888.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $1,135.00 target price (up from $1,133.00) on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,012.56.

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.