W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co Makes New $1.24 Million Investment in Elbit Systems Ltd. $ESLT

Key Points

• W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co opened a new position in Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) in Q4, buying 2,140 shares worth about $1.24 million.
• Significant insider selling: two EVPs each sold 7,654 shares on April 9 at about $887.40 per share, and insiders have sold 69,736 shares (~$61.9 million) over the past three months; insiders now own 0.84% of the stock.
• Fundamentals and flows: Elbit beat Q results (EPS $3.56 vs. $3.23 estimate), raised its quarterly dividend to $1.00 (annualized $4.00, ~0.5% yield), and large institutions like Vanguard and VanEck increased their holdings.

W.G. Shaheen & Associates DBA Whitney & Co bought a new position in shares of Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 2,140 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $1,236,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 998,267 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $573,131,000 after purchasing an additional 13,406 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 3,162.0% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 648,104 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $330,404,000 after purchasing an additional 628,236 shares during the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 618,325 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $356,345,000 after purchasing an additional 18,289 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of 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. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 10.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 370,911 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $189,090,000 after purchasing an additional 33,619 shares during the last quarter. 17.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Jonathan Ariel sold 7,654 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $887.40, for a total value of $6,792,159.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Haim Daniel Delmar sold 7,654 shares of the company's 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 $6,792,159.60. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 69,736 shares of company stock valued at $61,883,726 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.84% of the company's stock.

Elbit Systems Trading Down 1.7%

Shares of Elbit Systems stock opened at $819.50 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $868.12 and a 200-day moving average of $675.13. The stock has a market cap of $36.43 billion, a PE ratio of 72.14, a PEG ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.16. Elbit Systems Ltd. has a 52-week low of $369.60 and a 52-week high of $1,016.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.29.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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. Elbit Systems had a net margin of 6.73% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The company had revenue of $2.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.09 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Elbit Systems Ltd. will post 15.47 EPS for the current year.

Elbit Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 13th were paid a $1.00 dividend. This is an increase from Elbit Systems's previous quarterly dividend of $0.75. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 13th. Elbit Systems's payout ratio is currently 29.23%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on ESLT. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Elbit Systems from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, January 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Elbit Systems from $580.00 to $930.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Elbit Systems from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, April 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Elbit Systems currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $667.00.

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.

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