Alliancebernstein L.P. Sells 2,353 Shares of Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT)

Alliancebernstein L.P. lowered its holdings in Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT - Free Report) by 3.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 57,587 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 2,353 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned 0.13% of Elbit Systems worth $14,861,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ESLT. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 177.7% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 227,102 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $59,207,000 after buying an additional 145,324 shares in the last quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its holdings in Elbit Systems by 150.0% during the fourth quarter. Prestige Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 125 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. TIAA Trust National Association bought a new stake in shares of Elbit Systems in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $234,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 874,352 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $229,268,000 after buying an additional 10,215 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in Elbit Systems by 32.9% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 5,732 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $1,479,000 after buying an additional 1,420 shares in the last quarter. 17.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Elbit Systems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

Elbit Systems Price Performance

Shares of ESLT stock traded up $4.34 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $410.55. 13,306 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 37,887. The stock's 50-day moving average is $350.90 and its 200-day moving average is $284.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.64. Elbit Systems Ltd. has a 52 week low of $175.30 and a 52 week high of $420.00. The stock has a market cap of $18.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 70.18 and a beta of 0.32.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 18th. The aerospace company reported $2.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.71. Elbit Systems had a net margin of 4.00% and a return on equity of 11.34%. The business had revenue of $1.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.78 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that Elbit Systems Ltd. will post 8.05 EPS for the current year.

Elbit Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, May 5th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.60 dividend. This is a boost from Elbit Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. Elbit Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.72%.

About Elbit Systems

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.