HighTower Advisors LLC Increases Position in Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT)

HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its position in Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) by 130.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,072 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,738 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Elbit Systems were worth $799,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ESLT. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Elbit Systems by 57.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,179 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $436,000 after purchasing an additional 796 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in Elbit Systems by 22.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 3,158 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $632,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of Elbit Systems by 1.7% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 10,351 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,071,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in Elbit Systems by 99.4% during the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,390 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $678,000 after purchasing an additional 1,690 shares during the period. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems by 22.8% during the 3rd quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 13,767 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,742,000 after buying an additional 2,556 shares during the last quarter. 17.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Elbit Systems Price Performance

ESLT opened at $392.46 on Friday. Elbit Systems Ltd. has a 52-week low of $175.30 and a 52-week high of $420.00. The company has a 50 day moving average of $329.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $266.81. The company has a market cap of $17.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 67.09 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 18th. The aerospace company reported $2.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.95 by $0.71. Elbit Systems had a return on equity of 11.34% and a net margin of 4.00%. The firm had revenue of $1.93 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.78 billion. On average, analysts expect that Elbit Systems Ltd. will post 8.05 earnings per share for the current year.

Elbit Systems Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 22nd. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. This is a positive change from Elbit Systems’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Elbit Systems’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

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.