150,909 Shares in Elbit Systems Ltd. $ESLT Purchased by Jennison Associates LLC

Key Points

• Jennison Associates LLC initiated a new position in Elbit Systems, buying 150,909 shares valued at about $128.1 million in the first quarter and ending with a 0.34% stake.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed but cautious: the stock’s consensus rating is “Hold”, with an average price target of $803.75 after recent target cuts and rating downgrades from several firms.
• Elbit Systems reported better-than-expected quarterly results and also paid a $1.00 quarterly dividend, equal to a $4.00 annualized payout and a 0.5% yield.

Jennison Associates LLC bought a new stake in shares of Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 150,909 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $128,135,000. Jennison Associates LLC owned 0.34% of Elbit Systems at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Elbit Systems during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. WPG Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Elbit Systems during the first quarter worth $26,000. Wexford Capital LP bought a new position in shares of Elbit Systems during the third quarter worth $63,000. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new position in Elbit Systems during the fourth quarter valued at $68,000. Finally, Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in Elbit Systems during the fourth quarter valued at $69,000. 17.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on ESLT. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Elbit Systems from $950.00 to $880.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Elbit Systems from $930.00 to $950.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. Zacks Research cut Elbit Systems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $845.00 target price on Elbit Systems in a research report on Wednesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Elbit Systems presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $803.75.

Elbit Systems Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of ESLT opened at $741.55 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average is $792.32 and its 200 day moving average is $789.92. Elbit Systems Ltd. has a fifty-two week low of $427.08 and a fifty-two week high of $1,016.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.96 billion, a PE ratio of 60.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.41.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 26th. The aerospace company reported $3.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.98 by $0.89. Elbit Systems had a net margin of 7.14% and a return on equity of 16.15%. The business had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.14 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Elbit Systems Ltd. will post 15.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Elbit Systems Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 6th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 23rd were given a dividend of $1.00 per share. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 23rd. Elbit Systems's dividend payout ratio is currently 26.88%.

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.

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