Legato Capital Management LLC Decreases Holdings in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Legato Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 52.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,454 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,623 shares during the period. Legato Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $1,122,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of LLY. Diversified Portfolios Inc. increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Portfolios Inc. now owns 2,071 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,599,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Davidson Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 21.5% during the 4th quarter. Davidson Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,297 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,317,000 after purchasing an additional 759 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 12.2% during the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 4,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,800,000 after purchasing an additional 536 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $834,000. Finally, Certuity LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 107.1% during the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 5,676 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,382,000 after purchasing an additional 2,935 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

LLY opened at $872.81 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 1.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.03. The company has a market cap of $828.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.54, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 0.42. Eli Lilly and Company has a 52-week low of $711.40 and a 52-week high of $972.53. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $793.14 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $844.15.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 86.26%. Equities analysts anticipate that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.50 dividend. This is an increase from Eli Lilly and Company’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.41%.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Monday, December 9th that allows the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on LLY. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,025.00 to $1,015.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,100.00 price objective on the stock. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,000.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $997.50.

About Eli Lilly and Company

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.