Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL) Short Interest Down 12.2% in May

Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant drop in short interest during the month of May. As of May 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,100,000 shares, a drop of 12.2% from the April 30th total of 3,530,000 shares. Currently, 3.0% of the company's shares are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,010,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Grant A. Levy sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.85, for a total transaction of $568,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 146,316 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,318,064.60. The trade was a 6.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 6.64% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Lease

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AL. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in Air Lease in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd acquired a new stake in Air Lease during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its position in Air Lease by 152.4% during the first quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 588 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Air Lease during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Engine Capital Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Air Lease in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. 94.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Air Lease from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Bank of America downgraded shares of Air Lease from a "buy" rating to an "underperform" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $72.00 to $50.00 in a report on Friday, March 7th. Citigroup upgraded shares of Air Lease from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $45.00 to $68.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Air Lease from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group set a $50.00 price objective on shares of Air Lease in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $57.43.

Air Lease Stock Up 1.0%

Air Lease stock traded up $0.59 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $57.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 647,916 shares, compared to its average volume of 787,834. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $49.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $48.55. Air Lease has a 12 month low of $38.25 and a 12 month high of $59.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.37. The company has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.36.

Air Lease (NYSE:AL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The transportation company reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.24 by $0.27. Air Lease had a return on equity of 8.01% and a net margin of 15.65%. The firm had revenue of $738.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $709.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.87 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Air Lease will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Lease Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.53%. Air Lease's dividend payout ratio is presently 15.38%.

Air Lease Company Profile

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.