Palisade Asset Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Eli Lilly and Company $LLY

Key Points

• Palisade Asset Management cut its Eli Lilly stake by 22% in the fourth quarter, selling 4,162 shares and leaving it with 14,727 shares valued at about $15.8 million.
• Despite that trim, institutional ownership remains very high, with hedge funds and other large investors holding about 82.53% of Eli Lilly shares. Several major firms, including Vanguard, State Street, and Morgan Stanley, increased their positions.
• Analysts stay bullish on LLY, with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $1,227.74. The company also beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $8.55 EPS on $19.8 billion in revenue.

Palisade Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Free Report) by 22.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,727 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,162 shares during the quarter. Eli Lilly and Company comprises about 1.5% of Palisade Asset Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Palisade Asset Management LLC's holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $15,827,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 81,965,974 shares of the company's stock worth $88,087,193,000 after buying an additional 1,006,885 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,361,916 shares of the company's stock worth $38,002,744,000 after buying an additional 635,358 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 20.9% in the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 25,088,371 shares of the company's stock worth $19,141,787,000 after buying an additional 4,332,008 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 15,593,019 shares of the company's stock worth $16,757,510,000 after buying an additional 407,166 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 15,031,750 shares of the company's stock worth $16,154,619,000 after buying an additional 61,851 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on LLY. Truist Financial reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Monday, February 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $1,283.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, May 22nd. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,205.00 to $1,230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,330.00 to $1,350.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,227.74.

More Eli Lilly and Company News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Insider Monkey highlighted Eli Lilly as one of billionaire Ken Fisher’s top high-growth stock picks, a vote of confidence that may reinforce the market’s view that LLY remains a high-quality growth name. Billionaire Ken Fisher’s Top 5 High-Growth Stock Picks
• Positive Sentiment: Shares could benefit from a PRNewswire update showing Jaypirca (pirtobrutinib) significantly reduced the risk of disease progression or death in a Phase 3 CLL/SLL trial, suggesting Lilly’s pipeline has catalysts beyond obesity drugs. Lilly's Jaypirca (pirtobrutinib) significantly reduced the risk...
• Positive Sentiment: A Yahoo Finance article noted that Lilly’s newer JAK2 inhibitor data supports the idea that the company has broader growth drivers and possible upside beyond its obesity franchise. Eli Lilly JAK2 Data Highlights Pipeline Beyond Obesity And Valuation Upside
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple articles repeated the same bullish thesis that investors still like Eli Lilly for its strong growth, but some are questioning whether the stock’s valuation leaves less room for near-term upside. Should You Buy Eli Lilly Stock Now or Wait for a Dip?
• Negative Sentiment: That same valuation concern could weigh on the stock, since analysts and commentators continue to describe LLY as expensive even after its strong operating performance. Should You Buy Eli Lilly Stock Now or Wait for a Dip?

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

NYSE LLY opened at $1,130.12 on Tuesday. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12 month low of $623.78 and a 12 month high of $1,182.73. The stock has a market cap of $1.06 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.15, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.53. The company's 50 day moving average is $1,002.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1,016.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.97 by $1.58. Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 34.98% and a return on equity of 105.77%. The company had revenue of $19.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.34 EPS. The firm's 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, research analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 35.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 15th were paid a dividend of $1.73 per share. The ex-dividend date was 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 presently 24.58%.

Eli Lilly and Company Profile

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.

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