Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Elbit Systems Ltd. $ESLT

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Elbit Systems Ltd. by 1.8%, owning approximately 2.00% of the company valued at $341.3 million after acquiring additional shares in the first quarter.
• Elbit Systems recently declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.75 per share, up from $0.60, indicating a dividend yield of 0.6%.
• In its latest earnings report, Elbit Systems exceeded expectations with a $3.23 EPS, surpassing the consensus estimate of $2.57, alongside revenues of $1.97 billion for the quarter.

Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT - Free Report) by 1.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 889,904 shares of the aerospace company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,552 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 2.00% of Elbit Systems worth $341,276,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Elbit Systems in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 232.6% in the first quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 153 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $59,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC acquired a new position in shares of Elbit Systems in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $73,000. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Elbit Systems in the first quarter valued at approximately $203,000. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of Elbit Systems in the first quarter valued at approximately $206,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 17.88% of the company's stock.

Elbit Systems Price Performance

ESLT traded up $2.30 during trading on Thursday, reaching $459.32. 52,558 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 146,514. The business's 50 day moving average price is $449.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $399.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The company has a market capitalization of $20.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.33. Elbit Systems Ltd. has a 1 year low of $188.53 and a 1 year high of $494.32.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 13th. The aerospace company reported $3.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.66. The company had revenue of $1.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.89 billion. Elbit Systems had a return on equity of 14.29% and a net margin of 5.35%.During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Elbit Systems Ltd. will post 8.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Elbit Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 14th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 14th. This is a positive change from Elbit Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Elbit Systems's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on ESLT shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Elbit Systems from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Elbit Systems in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $500.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Elbit Systems has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $500.00.

Elbit Systems Profile

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.