Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) Trading Down 1.3% – Time to Sell?

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)’s share price dropped 1.3% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $834.06 and last traded at $841.37. Approximately 595,446 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 3,141,540 shares. The stock had previously closed at $852.35.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LLY has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup decreased their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley set a $1,146.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Berenberg Bank set a $970.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Leerink Partners set a $950.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,009.72.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.15. The company has a market capitalization of $791.81 billion, a PE ratio of 71.42, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $839.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $837.61.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.45 by ($0.13). Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 23.51% and a return on equity of 85.24%. Equities analysts forecast that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 EPS for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Monday, December 9th that permits the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Eli Lilly and Company

In other Eli Lilly and Company news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $818.24, for a total transaction of $818,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,840 shares in the company, valued at $4,778,521.60. The trade was a 14.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.13% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 11.9% in the fourth quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 6,794 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,245,000 after acquiring an additional 724 shares during the period. Centerpoint Advisory Group acquired a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $514,000. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 266,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,389,000 after purchasing an additional 1,867 shares during the period. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new position in Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter worth $834,000. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 30.2% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,739 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,202,000 after buying an additional 1,562 shares during the period. 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.