Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) Short Interest Down 21.6% in March

Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) was the target of a large drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 209,380 shares, a drop of 21.6% from the March 15th total of 267,003 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 202,659 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.0 days. Approximately 0.5% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Elbit Systems Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:ESLT traded up $2.79 on Friday, reaching $872.58. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 112,899 shares, compared to its average volume of 134,555. Elbit Systems has a 52-week low of $369.00 and a 52-week high of $1,016.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 76.81, a PEG ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.16. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $841.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $655.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

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

Elbit Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 27th. Investors of record on Monday, April 13th will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. This is a boost from Elbit Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 13th. Elbit Systems’s payout ratio is presently 29.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Elbit Systems

In other news, EVP Haim Daniel Delmar sold 7,654 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $887.40, for a total transaction of $6,792,159.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Yoram Shmuely sold 7,654 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $887.40, for a total value of $6,792,159.60. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 69,736 shares of company stock worth $61,883,726. Corporate insiders own 0.84% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ESLT. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 98.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,464 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $946,000 after acquiring an additional 1,225 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Elbit Systems in the 1st quarter valued at about $353,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 3,461.1% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 641 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 623 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 33.7% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 135,106 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $51,837,000 after buying an additional 34,049 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 7.8% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 16,521 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $6,339,000 after buying an additional 1,191 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 17.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on ESLT. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Elbit Systems in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Elbit Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 17th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Elbit Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Elbit Systems from $580.00 to $930.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $667.00.

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.