Air Lease (NYSE:AL) Shares Up 5.3% After Earnings Beat

Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL - Get Free Report) was up 5.3% during trading on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $51.58 and last traded at $51.36. Approximately 246,651 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average daily volume of 764,614 shares. The stock had previously closed at $48.76.

The transportation company reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.24 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $738.28 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $709.70 million. Air Lease had a return on equity of 8.01% and a net margin of 15.65%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.87 EPS.

Air Lease Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 4th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 4th. Air Lease's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 15.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on AL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Air Lease from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Air Lease from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group set a $50.00 target price on Air Lease in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Bank of America downgraded Air Lease from a "buy" rating to an "underperform" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $72.00 to $50.00 in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Air Lease has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $55.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Air Lease by 104.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 86,033 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $3,897,000 after buying an additional 43,981 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Air Lease during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Air Lease by 9.2% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 830,047 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $37,591,000 after purchasing an additional 69,887 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Air Lease by 23.6% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,309 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $111,000 after purchasing an additional 441 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Reinhart Partners LLC. boosted its stake in shares of Air Lease by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Reinhart Partners LLC. now owns 1,585,790 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $76,451,000 after purchasing an additional 42,034 shares during the period. 94.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Lease Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $5.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.33. 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 stock's fifty day moving average is $45.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.14.

About Air Lease

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.