Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on ESLT. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Elbit Systems from $580.00 to $930.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Elbit Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Elbit Systems in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $667.00.

Elbit Systems Price Performance

Shares of ESLT stock opened at $920.79 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $829.52 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $649.71. The stock has a market cap of $40.93 billion, a PE ratio of 81.06, a PEG ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.16. Elbit Systems has a 52-week low of $369.00 and a 52-week high of $1,016.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.29.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 17th. The aerospace company reported $3.56 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.33. The company had revenue of $2.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.09 billion. Elbit Systems had a net margin of 6.73% and a return on equity of 15.53%. As a group, analysts forecast that Elbit Systems will post 8.05 EPS for the current year.

Elbit Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 27th. Investors of record on Monday, April 13th will be given a $1.00 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 13th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. This is an increase from Elbit Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. Elbit Systems’s payout ratio is presently 29.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Oren Yaacov Sabag sold 8,504 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $887.40, for a total value of $7,546,449.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Haim Daniel Delmar sold 7,654 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 9th. The shares were 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 a total of 69,736 shares of company stock worth $61,883,726 in the last ninety days. 0.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Elbit Systems

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd increased its stake in Elbit Systems by 34.4% in the 4th quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 1,550,618 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $893,941,000 after buying an additional 397,049 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Elbit Systems by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 998,267 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $573,131,000 after buying an additional 13,406 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its stake in Elbit Systems by 3,162.0% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 648,104 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $330,404,000 after buying an additional 628,236 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd increased its stake in Elbit Systems by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 618,325 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $356,345,000 after buying an additional 18,289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership increased its stake in Elbit Systems by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 483,842 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $246,121,000 after buying an additional 12,003 shares during the last quarter. 17.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.