Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) Short Interest Update

Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 149,669 shares, a decline of 40.0% from the July 30th total of 249,525 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 87,190 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.7 days. Currently, 0.3% of the shares of the stock are short sold.

Institutional Trading of Elbit Systems

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of ESLT. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd boosted its stake in Elbit Systems by 34.4% during the fourth quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 1,550,618 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $893,941,000 after acquiring an additional 397,049 shares in the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Elbit Systems in the third quarter valued at $172,673,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. increased its stake in Elbit Systems by 206.1% in the first quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. now owns 269,599 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $228,914,000 after purchasing an additional 181,524 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new position in shares of Elbit Systems during the first quarter valued at about $128,135,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE raised its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 125.0% during the third quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 166,434 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $84,848,000 after purchasing an additional 92,449 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 17.88% of the company’s stock.

Elbit Systems Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of Elbit Systems stock traded down $5.27 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $703.41. The company had a trading volume of 11,226 shares, compared to its average volume of 128,302. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $775.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $813.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a current ratio of 1.39 and a quick ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $31.27 billion, a PE ratio of 52.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.17. Elbit Systems has a fifty-two week low of $453.00 and a fifty-two week high of $1,016.06.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The aerospace company reported $4.14 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.69 by $0.45. Elbit Systems had a return on equity of 16.66% and a net margin of 7.44%.The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.25 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Elbit Systems will post 15.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Elbit Systems Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 26th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be given a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Elbit Systems’s dividend payout ratio is presently 25.09%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ESLT shares. Zacks Research cut shares of Elbit Systems from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Morgan Stanley set a $845.00 price objective on shares of Elbit Systems in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Elbit Systems from $950.00 to $880.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Elbit Systems from $950.00 to $885.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Elbit Systems from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $870.00.

Elbit Systems Company Profile

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.