AerCap (NYSE:AER) Reaches New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $114.49 and last traded at $114.24, with a volume of 186063 shares. The stock had previously closed at $114.39.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AER has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of AerCap from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Bank of America raised 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. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of AerCap from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of AerCap from $101.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and set a $115.00 price target (up previously from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $119.25.

AerCap Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $21.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.15, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.41. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $103.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $99.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89.

AerCap (NYSE:AER - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.69 by $0.99. AerCap had a return on equity of 13.98% and a net margin of 32.38%. The business had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.29 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that AerCap Holdings will post 11.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AerCap Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.94%. AerCap's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.58%.

AerCap announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 26th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of AerCap

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rhumbline Advisers grew its position in shares of AerCap by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 56,486 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,771,000 after purchasing an additional 5,137 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in AerCap by 26.6% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 447 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI grew its position in AerCap by 24.8% during the first quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 129,682 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $13,250,000 after buying an additional 25,780 shares in the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC bought a new position in AerCap in the 1st quarter worth about $52,794,000. Finally, United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in AerCap in the 1st quarter worth about $689,000. 96.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AerCap Company Profile

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.