Wall Street Zen Upgrades Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) to Strong-Buy

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Sunday.

Elbit Systems Trading Down 3.9%

Shares of Elbit Systems stock opened at $422.54 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.09, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.21. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $406.91 and a 200 day moving average of $349.31. Elbit Systems has a fifty-two week low of $175.30 and a fifty-two week high of $476.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.62 and a beta of 0.31.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 20th. The aerospace company reported $2.57 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $1.90 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.69 billion. Elbit Systems had a net margin of 4.95% and a return on equity of 13.49%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.81 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Elbit Systems will post 8.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Elbit Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 24th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 24th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Elbit Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.38%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Elbit Systems

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its position in Elbit Systems by 177.7% during the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 227,102 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $59,207,000 after acquiring an additional 145,324 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in shares of Elbit Systems in the 1st quarter valued at $25,929,000. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 61.2% in the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 117,083 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $44,922,000 after buying an additional 44,459 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Elbit Systems by 13.1% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 338,256 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $87,294,000 after purchasing an additional 39,095 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Elbit Systems by 61.3% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 100,779 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $38,533,000 after acquiring an additional 38,305 shares in the last quarter. 17.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Elbit Systems Company Profile

Elbit Systems Ltd. develops and supplies a portfolio of airborne, land, and naval systems and products for the defense, homeland security, and commercial aviation applications primarily in Israel. The company operates through Aerospace, C4I and Cyber, ISTAR and EW, Land, and Elbit Systems of America segments.