Altshuler Shaham Ltd Trims Position in Elbit Systems Ltd. $ESLT

Altshuler Shaham Ltd reduced its position in Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) by 16.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 511,720 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 104,194 shares during the quarter. Elbit Systems makes up about 4.3% of Altshuler Shaham Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Altshuler Shaham Ltd’s holdings in Elbit Systems were worth $294,520,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 741 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $428,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Cardinal Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 7,889 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,558,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Arax Advisory Partners boosted its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 25.0% in the 4th quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 150 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $87,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust boosted its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 466 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $269,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Family Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. West Family Investments Inc. now owns 1,136 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $579,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. 17.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Elbit Systems Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ ESLT opened at $821.82 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $36.53 billion, a PE ratio of 66.54, a P/E/G ratio of 3.50 and a beta of 0.14. Elbit Systems Ltd. has a 12-month low of $415.90 and a 12-month high of $1,016.06. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $838.21 and its 200 day simple moving average is $754.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 26th. The aerospace company reported $3.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.98 by $0.89. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. Elbit Systems had a net margin of 7.14% and a return on equity of 16.15%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Elbit Systems Ltd. will post 15.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Elbit Systems Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 23rd. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. Elbit Systems’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Elbit Systems

In related news, CEO Bezhalel Machlis sold 25,514 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $887.40, for a total transaction of $22,641,123.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Jonathan Ariel sold 7,654 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $887.40, for a total transaction of $6,792,159.60. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 69,736 shares of company stock valued at $61,883,726 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ESLT has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Zacks Research raised shares of Elbit Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $950.00 price objective on shares of Elbit Systems in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Elbit Systems from $930.00 to $950.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Elbit Systems currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $742.75.

About Elbit Systems

Elbit Systems Ltd. is an Israel-based defense electronics company that designs, develops and supplies a broad range of systems for military, homeland security and commercial aviation customers. The company focuses on integrated, platform-level solutions that combine sensors, communications, command-and-control software and weapons integration to support intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), force protection and mission management.

Its product and service portfolio spans unmanned aircraft systems, electro-optic and signal intelligence systems, electronic warfare and communications equipment, avionics and mission systems for military and commercial aircraft, and land and naval systems.