AerCap (NYSE:AER) Reaches New 52-Week High - Here's Why

AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $117.87 and last traded at $116.90, with a volume of 228715 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $116.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on AER. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of AerCap from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $115.00 price target (up from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of AerCap from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of AerCap from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, UBS Group downgraded shares of AerCap to an "underperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and seven have given 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 a consensus target price of $119.25.

AerCap Price Performance

The business's 50 day moving average is $105.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $100.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $21.53 billion, a PE ratio of 9.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

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

AerCap Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.94%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 14th. AerCap's payout ratio is currently 9.58%.

AerCap declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, February 26th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. 59 North Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of AerCap by 40.6% in the first quarter. 59 North Capital Management LP now owns 5,209,534 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $532,258,000 after purchasing an additional 1,504,620 shares during the last quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP grew its holdings in shares of AerCap by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP now owns 3,097,840 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $296,463,000 after purchasing an additional 38,264 shares during the last quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP grew its holdings in shares of AerCap by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 2,934,185 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $280,802,000 after purchasing an additional 86,548 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of AerCap by 22.9% in the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,608,099 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $249,595,000 after purchasing an additional 485,999 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 699,520 shares during 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.