SG Americas Securities LLC Acquires 213,767 Shares of Air Lease Corporation $AL

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its Air Lease stake by 2,594.3%, buying 213,767 shares to hold 222,007 shares (~0.20% of the company) valued at $14.26M, while institutional investors now own 94.59% of the stock with large recent moves from AQR, Pentwater, Magnetar and Norges Bank.
• Air Lease reported Q4 EPS of $2.20 vs. the $1.46 consensus and revenue was up 15.1% YoY to $679.5M (below estimates); the shares trade at a P/E of 6.96, market cap of $7.26B, and the company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.22 (1.4% yield, ex-dividend March 2).

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its holdings in Air Lease Corporation (NYSE:AL - Free Report) by 2,594.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 222,007 shares of the transportation company's stock after purchasing an additional 213,767 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC owned about 0.20% of Air Lease worth $14,260,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AL. Pentwater Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Air Lease in the 3rd quarter valued at $140,030,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Air Lease by 930.1% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,283,492 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $145,321,000 after buying an additional 2,061,817 shares in the last quarter. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Air Lease during the 3rd quarter worth about $100,534,000. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Air Lease during the 2nd quarter worth about $71,910,000. Finally, AQR Arbitrage LLC bought a new position in shares of Air Lease in the 3rd quarter valued at about $64,190,000. Institutional investors own 94.59% of the company's stock.

Air Lease Stock Up 0.1%

Air Lease stock opened at $64.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.33, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The company's 50-day moving average is $64.65 and its 200-day moving average is $64.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.26 billion, a PE ratio of 6.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.11. Air Lease Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $38.25 and a fifty-two week high of $64.96.

Air Lease (NYSE:AL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The transportation company reported $2.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.46 by $0.74. The business had revenue of $679.54 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $782.67 million. Air Lease had a net margin of 35.72% and a return on equity of 8.54%. Air Lease's revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.83 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Air Lease Corporation will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Lease Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be given a $0.22 dividend. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. Air Lease's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.45%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on AL shares. Barclays reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating and issued a $65.00 target price (down from $68.00) on shares of Air Lease in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Zacks Research upgraded Air Lease from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Air Lease in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.00.

Air Lease Company Profile

Air Lease Corporation NYSE: AL is a leading aircraft leasing company that acquires commercial jet aircraft and leases them to airlines worldwide. The firm's core business activities include direct aircraft acquisition, lease management and portfolio remarketing. By structuring sale‐and‐leaseback transactions, operating leases and secured loans, Air Lease provides flexible financing solutions that enable carriers to modernize their fleets without committing large amounts of capital to ownership.

Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Los Angeles, Air Lease Corporation serves a diverse customer base spanning North America, Europe, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding AL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Air Lease Corporation (NYSE:AL - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.