Legato Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Eli Lilly and Company $LLY

Key Points

• Legato Capital Management increased its Eli Lilly stake by 283.3% in the fourth quarter, ending with 3,404 shares valued at about $3.66 million.
• Eli Lilly reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $8.55 and revenue of $19.8 billion, both topping estimates and rising sharply from a year earlier.
• Analysts remain generally bullish on LLY, with recent Buy ratings and higher price targets from Goldman Sachs and Jefferies, while the company also declared a $1.73 quarterly dividend.

Legato Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Free Report) by 283.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,404 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,516 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC's holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $3,658,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Cidel Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 26.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,726 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,392,000 after buying an additional 5,591 shares during the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 27,719 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,789,000 after buying an additional 592 shares during the last quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 25.6% in the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 42,418 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,365,000 after buying an additional 8,659 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 30.8% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 31,145 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,471,000 after buying an additional 7,338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 165,165 shares of the company's stock valued at $126,022,000 after buying an additional 5,595 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $1,066.59 on Friday. Eli Lilly and Company has a one year low of $623.78 and a one year high of $1,133.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.50. The business has a fifty day moving average of $942.87 and a two-hundred day moving average of $1,003.77. The company has a market cap of $1.00 trillion, a P/E ratio of 37.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.48.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $8.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.97 by $1.58. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 105.77% and a net margin of 34.98%.The company had revenue of $19.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.34 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company's quarterly revenue was up 55.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 35.500-37.000 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 35.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be issued a $1.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 15th. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Eli Lilly and Company's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.58%.

More Eli Lilly and Company News

Here are the key news stories impacting Eli Lilly and Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reaffirmed its Buy rating on LLY and raised its price target to $1,283, signaling confidence in further upside. MarketScreener Latest Ratings
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies lifted its price target on Eli Lilly to $1,330, also implying meaningful upside from recent trading levels. MarketScreener
• Positive Sentiment: New clinical updates across Lilly’s pipeline, including positive obesity conference data, Alzheimer’s study progress, and a new heart-failure trial, help reinforce the market’s view that Lilly has multiple growth drivers beyond its current diabetes and obesity drugs.
• Neutral Sentiment: Lilly also announced an acquisition of Engage Biologics, extending its gene-therapy ambitions; this supports long-term diversification, but the near-term stock impact is less direct. Eli Lilly’s Engage Biologics Deal Extends Genetic Bets Beyond Obesity Boom

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,294.00 to $1,133.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Daiwa Securities Group lifted their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,230.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $1,283.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,205.00 to $1,230.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,220.37.

About Eli Lilly and Company

Eli Lilly and Company NYSE: LLY is a global pharmaceutical company founded in 1876 and headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes a broad range of medicines and therapies for patients worldwide. Eli Lilly maintains operations and commercial presence across North America, Europe, Asia and other regions, serving both developed and emerging markets. The company has been led in recent years by President and Chief Executive Officer David A.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LLY? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.