Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $2 Million in Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 7,747 shares of the aerospace company's stock, valued at approximately $1,999,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ESLT. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position 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 valued at $229,268,000 after buying an additional 10,215 shares in the last quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd increased its stake in Elbit Systems by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 449,747 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $117,520,000 after acquiring an additional 41,401 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Elbit Systems by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 338,256 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $87,294,000 after purchasing an additional 39,095 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership boosted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 145,324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Elbit Systems by 12.2% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 170,703 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $34,158,000 after purchasing an additional 18,614 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 17.88% of the company's stock.

Elbit Systems Trading Up 2.4 %

Shares of Elbit Systems stock opened at $397.49 on Thursday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $374.64 and its 200 day moving average is $300.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.67 billion, a PE ratio of 67.95 and a beta of 0.32. Elbit Systems Ltd. has a 1 year low of $175.30 and a 1 year high of $420.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

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

Elbit Systems Increases Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.

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