Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) Receives $667.00 Average Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $667.00.

Several research firms have weighed in on ESLT. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Elbit Systems in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research raised Elbit Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Elbit Systems from $580.00 to $930.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Elbit Systems from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Ran Kril sold 6,803 shares of Elbit Systems stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $887.40, for a total value of $6,036,982.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Bezhalel Machlis sold 25,514 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 value of $22,641,123.60. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 69,736 shares of company stock valued at $61,883,726 over the last 90 days. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Elbit Systems

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 397,049 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Elbit Systems by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 998,267 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $573,131,000 after acquiring an additional 13,406 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Elbit Systems by 3,162.0% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 648,104 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $330,404,000 after acquiring 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 worth $356,345,000 after purchasing an additional 18,289 shares during the period. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in Elbit Systems by 2.5% in the third quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 483,842 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $246,121,000 after purchasing an additional 12,003 shares during the last quarter. 17.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Elbit Systems Price Performance

ESLT stock opened at $872.58 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $38.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 76.81, a PEG ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 0.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Elbit Systems has a 12-month low of $369.00 and a 12-month high of $1,016.06. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $841.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $655.58.

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

Elbit Systems Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. This is an increase from Elbit Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 13th. Elbit Systems’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.31%.

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.