Ballast Inc. Has $3.56 Million Stake in Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY)

Ballast Inc. cut its stake in shares of Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) by 1.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,575 shares of the company’s stock after selling 61 shares during the quarter. Eli Lilly and Company makes up about 1.1% of Ballast Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Ballast Inc.’s holdings in Eli Lilly and Company were worth $3,559,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LLY. Lipe & Dalton bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its position in Eli Lilly and Company by 188.2% in the 4th quarter. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 49 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Eli Lilly and Company in the 1st quarter valued at about $39,000. Tidemark LLC bought a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eli Lilly and Company in the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. 82.53% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eli Lilly and Company Price Performance

Shares of LLY stock traded up $10.57 on Friday, reaching $944.71. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,044,315 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,921,677. The company has a market capitalization of $897.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 139.25, a PEG ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 0.41. Eli Lilly and Company has a 12-month low of $434.34 and a 12-month high of $948.71. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $845.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $760.02. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90.

Eli Lilly and Company (NYSE:LLY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The company reported $2.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.05. Eli Lilly and Company had a return on equity of 56.98% and a net margin of 17.08%. The firm had revenue of $8.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.94 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.62 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 26.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Eli Lilly and Company will post 13.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eli Lilly and Company Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 15th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 15th. Eli Lilly and Company’s payout ratio is 76.58%.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Lilly Endowment Inc sold 210,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $939.82, for a total value of $197,362,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 96,943,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $91,109,731,514.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder Lilly Endowment Inc sold 210,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $939.82, for a total value of $197,362,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 96,943,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $91,109,731,514.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Donald A. Zakrowski sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $819.47, for a total transaction of $614,602.50. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 7,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,842,821.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,214,704 shares of company stock worth $1,066,841,316. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on LLY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Eli Lilly and Company from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company from $770.00 to $840.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $885.00 target price on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a research report on Monday, July 1st. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Eli Lilly and Company from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $1,023.00 price objective on shares of Eli Lilly and Company in a report on Friday, July 5th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eli Lilly and Company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $843.00.

Eli Lilly and 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.