Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) Short Interest Update

Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) was the target of a large decrease in short interest in the month of August. As of August 14th, there was short interest totaling 149,669 shares, a decrease of 40.0% from the July 30th total of 249,525 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 87,190 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days. Currently, 0.3% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESLT has been the subject of a number of research reports. Weiss Ratings cut Elbit Systems from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Elbit Systems from $950.00 to $885.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on Elbit Systems from $950.00 to $880.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. 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 price target on shares of Elbit Systems in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $870.00.

Elbit Systems Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of Elbit Systems stock traded down $5.27 on Monday, hitting $703.41. The company had a trading volume of 11,226 shares, compared to its average volume of 128,302. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.17. Elbit Systems has a 1 year low of $453.00 and a 1 year high of $1,016.06. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $775.16 and a 200-day moving average of $813.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a current ratio of 1.39.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 11th. The aerospace company reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.69 by $0.45. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. Elbit Systems had a return on equity of 16.66% and a net margin of 7.44%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Elbit Systems will post 15.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Elbit Systems Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 13th will be paid a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 13th. This represents a $4.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Elbit Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 25.09%.

Institutional Trading of Elbit Systems

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ESLT. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its position in shares of Elbit Systems by 98.9% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,464 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $946,000 after purchasing an additional 1,225 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Elbit Systems in the 1st quarter worth about $353,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Elbit Systems by 3,461.1% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 641 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 623 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Elbit Systems by 33.7% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 135,106 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $51,837,000 after buying an additional 34,049 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in Elbit Systems by 7.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 16,521 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $6,339,000 after buying an additional 1,191 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 17.88% of the company’s stock.

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.