Franklin Resources Inc. Lowers Holdings in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER)

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its holdings in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,393,228 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 207,980 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in AerCap were worth $516,132,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in AerCap by 0.3% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 230,945 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $21,875,000 after buying an additional 643 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AerCap by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,737,476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $164,574,000 after acquiring an additional 22,346 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of AerCap during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $66,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in AerCap in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $701,000. Finally, TOMS Capital Investment Management LP purchased a new stake in AerCap in the third quarter valued at approximately $60,526,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.42% of the company’s stock.

AerCap Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE:AER opened at $102.14 on Tuesday. AerCap Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $81.93 and a fifty-two week high of $107.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $99.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. The stock has a market cap of $19.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.83.

AerCap (NYSE:AER) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $3.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.75. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. AerCap had a net margin of 32.38% and a return on equity of 13.98%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that AerCap Holdings will post 11.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AerCap declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

AerCap Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.06%. This is an increase from AerCap’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 12th. AerCap’s payout ratio is 9.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AER has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group cut AerCap to an “underperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of AerCap from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective (up previously from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of AerCap from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $117.43.

About AerCap

AerCap Holdings N.V. engages in the lease, financing, sale, and management of commercial flight equipment in China, Hong Kong, Macau, the United States, Ireland, and internationally. The company offers aircraft asset management services, such as remarketing aircraft and engines; collecting rental and maintenance rent payments, monitoring aircraft maintenance, monitoring and enforcing contract compliance, and accepting delivery and redelivery of aircraft and engines; and conducting ongoing lessee financial performance reviews.