National Pension Service Purchases 74,207 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Key Points

• The National Pension Service increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 4.8%, owning 1,627,597 shares valued at approximately $1.34 billion, making it the 12th largest holding in its portfolio.
• Analysts have a positive outlook on Eli Lilly, with 16 buy ratings and an average price target of $977.65 following recent financial performance that included an EPS of $6.31, exceeding estimates significantly.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.50 per share, representing a 0.9% yield, with a payout ratio of approximately 39.22%.

National Pension Service raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Free Report) by 4.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,627,597 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 74,207 shares during the quarter. Eli Lilly and Company comprises approximately 1.3% of National Pension Service's portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.17% of Eli Lilly and Company worth $1,344,249,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LLY. WestEnd Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 210.0% during the 1st quarter. WestEnd Advisors LLC now owns 31 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Citizens National Bank Trust Department grew its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 180.0% during the 1st quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 42 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, O Brien Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 25.5% during the 1st quarter. O Brien Wealth Partners LLC now owns 59 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 12 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.53% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on LLY shares. Leerink Partners restated a "market perform" rating and set a $715.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 5th. HSBC lowered shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a "buy" rating to a "reduce" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $1,150.00 to $700.00 in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,010.00 to $900.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $964.88.

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Up 3.8%

NYSE LLY traded up $24.78 during trading on Thursday, hitting $685.27. 8,340,971 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,136,973. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $767.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $796.25. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12-month low of $623.78 and a 12-month high of $972.53. The firm has a market cap of $648.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.79, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.00.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $6.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.59 by $0.72. The firm had revenue of $15.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $14.40 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 92.72% and a net margin of 25.91%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 37.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.92 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. Eli Lilly and Company's dividend payout ratio is 39.22%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Jamere Jackson bought 200 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $639.56 per share, for a total transaction of $127,912.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 9,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,013,143.12. This trade represents a 2.17% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO David A. Ricks bought 1,632 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $644.77 per share, for a total transaction of $1,052,264.64. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 546,601 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $352,431,926.77. The trade was a 0.30% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 4,514 shares of company stock valued at $2,894,841. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

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.