Heard Capital LLC Reduces Holdings in Elbit Systems Ltd. $ESLT

Heard Capital LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Elbit Systems Ltd. (NASDAQ:ESLT) by 17.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 178,571 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after selling 37,269 shares during the period. Elbit Systems makes up approximately 4.8% of Heard Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Heard Capital LLC’s holdings in Elbit Systems were worth $103,162,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Elbit Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Wexford Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Elbit Systems during the third quarter worth about $63,000. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new stake in shares of Elbit Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $68,000. Hilton Head Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Elbit Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $69,000. Finally, Greenline Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Elbit Systems during the fourth quarter worth about $85,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 17.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jonathan Ariel sold 7,654 shares of Elbit Systems stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $887.40, for a total transaction of $6,792,159.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Ran Kril sold 6,803 shares of Elbit Systems stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $887.40, for a total value of $6,036,982.20. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 69,736 shares of company stock valued at $61,883,726. 0.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on ESLT. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and set a $950.00 price target on shares of Elbit Systems in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Elbit Systems from $930.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Elbit Systems from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $742.75.

Elbit Systems Trading Up 0.9%

Elbit Systems stock opened at $821.99 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Elbit Systems Ltd. has a 52 week low of $415.90 and a 52 week high of $1,016.06. The company has a market capitalization of $36.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 66.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.14. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $840.25 and a 200 day moving average price of $751.91.

Elbit Systems (NASDAQ:ESLT) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 26th. The aerospace company reported $3.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.98 by $0.89. Elbit Systems had a return on equity of 16.15% and a net margin of 7.14%.The firm had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.14 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Elbit Systems Ltd. will post 15.23 EPS for the current year.

Elbit Systems Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 6th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 23rd will be issued a dividend of $1.00 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 23rd. This represents a $4.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.5%. Elbit Systems’s payout ratio is 26.96%.

Elbit Systems 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.