Willis Investment Counsel Invests $7.37 Million in Eli Lilly and Company $LLY

Willis Investment Counsel purchased a new stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 9,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,371,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LLY. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its stake in Eli Lilly and Company by 97.5% during the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 101,305,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,669,349,000 after acquiring an additional 50,002,551 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 80,407,430 shares of the company’s stock valued at $62,680,004,000 after purchasing an additional 1,183,038 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,707,512 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,495,261,000 after purchasing an additional 81,587 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Eli Lilly and Company by 13.3% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 5,821,993 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,808,443,000 after buying an additional 682,203 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company during the first quarter valued at approximately $4,613,912,000. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eli Lilly and Company Stock Performance

Shares of LLY stock opened at $1,042.86 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $849.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $786.02. Eli Lilly and Company has a 1 year low of $623.78 and a 1 year high of $1,057.00. The firm has a market cap of $985.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 68.16, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.28.

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

Eli Lilly and Company Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. Eli Lilly and Company’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on LLY shares. Erste Group Bank raised Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,038.00 to $1,182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Leerink Partnrs upgraded shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Daiwa Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $700.00 to $940.00 in a report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Eli Lilly and Company from $1,050.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,027.95.

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.