Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Shares Down 0.5%

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) shares dropped 0.5% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $743.00 and last traded at $746.74. Approximately 2,569,799 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 16% from the average daily volume of 2,215,511 shares. The stock had previously closed at $750.77.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LLY has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $815.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $700.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $805.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 16th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $710.00 to $865.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised Eli Lilly and Company from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $728.05.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $713.45 billion, a PE ratio of 129.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.64 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $764.03 and its 200 day simple moving average is $657.67.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.19. The business had revenue of $9.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.95 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 51.22% and a net margin of 15.36%. The company's revenue was up 28.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 12.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, major shareholder Lilly Endowment Inc sold 78,573 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $648.07, for a total transaction of $50,920,804.11. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 99,333,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at $64,375,262,246.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eli Lilly and Company

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company in the first quarter valued at $107,000. Roundview Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 2.6% in the first quarter. Roundview Capital LLC now owns 2,056 shares of the company's stock valued at $589,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company in the first quarter valued at $210,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 9.9% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 53,052 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,193,000 after acquiring an additional 4,774 shares during the period. Finally, Barometer Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the first quarter valued at $561,000. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eli Lilly and Company 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.