Employees Retirement System of Texas Buys 11,816 Shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Employees Retirement System of Texas raised its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 6.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 205,168 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,816 shares during the quarter. Eli Lilly and Company accounts for about 0.8% of Employees Retirement System of Texas’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Employees Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $158,390,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Bell Asset Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the fourth quarter worth about $4,352,000. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC increased its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Sierra Summit Advisors LLC now owns 10,856 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,381,000 after acquiring an additional 1,767 shares during the last quarter. Trek Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 20.4% during the 4th quarter. Trek Financial LLC now owns 2,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,773,000 after acquiring an additional 389 shares in the last quarter. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD boosted its position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 891.6% during the 4th quarter. Polymer Capital Management HK LTD now owns 4,958 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,828,000 after acquiring an additional 4,458 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Edgewood Management LLC increased its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 13.0% in the fourth quarter. Edgewood Management LLC now owns 2,547,982 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,967,042,000 after purchasing an additional 292,150 shares during the last quarter. 82.53% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LLY has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup dropped their price target on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,250.00 to $1,190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com raised Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Bank of America restated a “buy” rating and set a $997.00 price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Leerink Partners set a $950.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $1,146.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Eli Lilly and Company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,009.72.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Down 6.5 %

Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $737.56 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $699.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.99, a PEG ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 0.51. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $848.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $831.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a twelve month low of $692.96 and a twelve month high of $972.53.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $5.32 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 85.24%. As a group, research analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 23.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Eli Lilly and Company announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Monday, December 9th that authorizes the company to repurchase $15.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Eli Lilly and Company

In related news, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 1,000 shares of Eli Lilly and Company 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 transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 5,840 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,778,521.60. The trade was a 14.62 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.