Air Lease (NYSE:AL) Sets New 12-Month High at $51.40

Shares of Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $51.40 and last traded at $51.22, with a volume of 46452 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.76.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on AL shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Air Lease from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Air Lease from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Air Lease from $46.00 to $48.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.50.

Air Lease Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $43.12 and a 200-day moving average of $40.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market cap of $5.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.86, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.62.

Air Lease (NYSE:AL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The transportation company reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.79. The business had revenue of $716.57 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $672.95 million. Air Lease had a return on equity of 8.87% and a net margin of 22.89%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 19.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.21 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Air Lease Co. will post 5.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Lease Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 10th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $0.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.62%. Air Lease’s dividend payout ratio is currently 16.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Air Lease

In related news, EVP Carol Hyland Forsyte sold 3,046 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.02, for a total transaction of $121,900.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 72,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,884,361.46. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Kishore Korde sold 16,593 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $39.70, for a total value of $658,742.10. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 112,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,461,287.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Carol Hyland Forsyte sold 3,046 shares of Air Lease stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.02, for a total value of $121,900.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 72,073 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,884,361.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 89,646 shares of company stock valued at $3,705,152. 6.64% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AL. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Air Lease in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,256,000. Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its stake in shares of Air Lease by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 186,241 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $7,340,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Air Lease by 47.6% during the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 938,826 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $36,999,000 after purchasing an additional 302,576 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Air Lease by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 117,134 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,616,000 after buying an additional 2,423 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Air Lease during the 3rd quarter valued at $5,982,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.59% of the company’s stock.

About Air Lease

Air Lease Corporation, an aircraft leasing company, engages in the purchase and leasing of commercial jet aircraft to airlines worldwide. It sells aircraft from its fleet to third parties, including other leasing companies, financial services companies, airlines, and other investors. The company provides fleet management services to investors and owners of aircraft portfolios.