Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading 3.9% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) shares were up 3.9% on Monday after Wall Street Zen upgraded the stock from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating. The company traded as high as $901.34 and last traded at $896.1510. Approximately 5,391,711 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 34% from the average daily volume of 4,023,483 shares. The stock had previously closed at $862.86.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on LLY. Daiwa America lowered shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 17th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Eli Lilly and Company from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $700.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Sunday, August 17th. Leerink Partnrs lowered shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,010.00 to $900.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Leerink Partners reiterated a “market perform” rating and issued a $715.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $940.00.

Insider Transactions at Eli Lilly and Company

In other news, CEO David A. Ricks bought 1,632 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer owned 546,601 shares in the company, valued at approximately $352,431,926.77. This trade represents a 0.30% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director J Erik Fyrwald bought 1,565 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $642.33 per share, with a total value of $1,005,246.45. Following the transaction, the director owned 74,578 shares in the company, valued at $47,903,686.74. The trade was a 2.14% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Insiders have purchased 4,514 shares of company stock worth $2,894,841 in the last quarter. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Eli Lilly and Company

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ascent Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.5% during the first quarter. Ascent Capital Management LLC now owns 495 shares of the company’s stock valued at $409,000 after acquiring an additional 12 shares during the period. Willner & Heller LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.5% during the first quarter. Willner & Heller LLC now owns 854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $705,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Braun Bostich & Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 2.5% during the second quarter. Braun Bostich & Associates Inc. now owns 527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $411,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Rise Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.8% during the second quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 732 shares of the company’s stock valued at $571,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. Finally, Occidental Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% during the second quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC now owns 1,966 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,533,000 after acquiring an additional 13 shares during the period. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $780.74 and its 200-day moving average price is $771.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The firm has a market cap of $848.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.47.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $7.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.42 by $0.60. The business had revenue of $17.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.09 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 25.91% and a return on equity of 92.72%. The firm’s revenue was up 53.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.18 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2025 guidance at 23.000-23.700 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.35%.

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.