AerCap (NYSE:AER) Hits New 52-Week High - Still a Buy?

AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $112.00 and last traded at $111.20, with a volume of 547991 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $109.57.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective 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. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $115.00 price objective (up previously from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on AerCap from $101.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Susquehanna upped their price target on AerCap from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, UBS Group cut AerCap to an "underperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, AerCap presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $119.25.

AerCap Stock Performance

The stock's 50-day moving average price is $100.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $98.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. The company has a market capitalization of $21.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.41.

AerCap (NYSE:AER - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.01 billion. AerCap had a net margin of 32.38% and a return on equity of 13.98%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.29 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that AerCap Holdings will post 11.29 EPS for the current year.

AerCap Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.95%. AerCap's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.58%.

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

Institutional Trading of AerCap

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of AerCap in the 4th quarter worth approximately $218,517,000. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. grew its position in AerCap by 139.1% during the fourth quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. now owns 1,505,799 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $144,105,000 after purchasing an additional 875,950 shares in the last quarter. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP grew its position in AerCap by 118.8% during the fourth quarter. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP now owns 1,398,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $133,789,000 after purchasing an additional 759,000 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in AerCap by 190.7% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,074,931 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $102,871,000 after acquiring an additional 705,212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in AerCap by 43.7% in the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,298,552 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $234,843,000 after acquiring an additional 699,520 shares in the last quarter. 96.42% of the stock is currently owned by 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.