Kessler Investment Group LLC Decreases Position in Eli Lilly and Company $LLY

Kessler Investment Group LLC lessened its stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 27.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,956 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,091 shares during the period. Eli Lilly and Company comprises approximately 1.3% of Kessler Investment Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Kessler Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $3,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LLY. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 81,965,974 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,087,193,000 after acquiring an additional 1,006,885 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,726,558 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,496,364,000 after acquiring an additional 219,590 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in Eli Lilly and Company by 20.9% during the third quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 25,088,371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,141,787,000 after purchasing an additional 4,332,008 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 4.1% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 14,563,780 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,112,164,000 after purchasing an additional 574,229 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors boosted its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 6.1% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 10,001,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,628,447,000 after purchasing an additional 579,381 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.53% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $1,300.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 13th. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $930.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $1,344.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,218.33.

Key Stories Impacting Eli Lilly and Company

Here are the key news stories impacting Eli Lilly and Company this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Rothschild & Co Redburn raised its price target on Eli Lilly to $900 from $880, signaling continued confidence in the company’s long-term value despite the target still sitting below the recent share price. MarketScreener
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports highlighted strong demand for Lilly’s GLP-1 medicines, including Mounjaro, with first-quarter sales described as a major driver of revenue growth and a key reason investors remain optimistic about future earnings. Motley Fool
• Positive Sentiment: Reuters reported that early weight-loss pill data is boosting Lilly and Novo Nordisk by raising hopes the market could expand beyond injections to millions more patients, which could support a larger long-term revenue opportunity. Reuters
• Positive Sentiment: Lilly announced an additional $4.5 billion investment in Indiana manufacturing sites, reinforcing confidence in its ability to meet future demand for weight-loss and other therapies while expanding U.S. production capacity. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Several commentary pieces continued to frame Lilly as a high-quality growth stock, but these were largely reiterations of the bullish long-term thesis rather than fresh catalysts. Zacks
• Neutral Sentiment: Articles about shareholder support for the board and broader analyst upgrades suggest stable governance and sentiment, but they do not appear to be major standalone trading catalysts. TipRanks
• Negative Sentiment: One article noted that Eli Lilly’s valuation remains rich and that some investors see more upside in competitors, which can limit enthusiasm even when fundamentals are strong. Motley Fool

Eli Lilly and Company Trading Down 2.8%

Shares of Eli Lilly and Company stock opened at $948.01 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $943.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $990.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12-month low of $623.78 and a 12-month high of $1,133.95. The company has a market cap of $892.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.68, a PEG ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 0.48.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $8.55 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.97 by $1.58. The company had revenue of $19.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.82 billion. Eli Lilly and Company had a net margin of 34.98% and a return on equity of 105.77%. Eli Lilly and Company’s revenue for the quarter was up 55.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.34 earnings per share. Eli Lilly and Company has set its FY 2026 guidance at 35.500-37.000 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Eli Lilly and Company will post 35.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 15th will be given a dividend of $1.73 per share. This represents a $6.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 15th. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is 24.58%.

About Eli Lilly and Company

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE: LLY) is a global pharmaceutical company founded in 1876 and headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company researches, develops, manufactures and commercializes a broad range of medicines and therapies for patients worldwide. Eli Lilly maintains operations and commercial presence across North America, Europe, Asia and other regions, serving both developed and emerging markets. The company has been led in recent years by President and Chief Executive Officer David A.