AQR Arbitrage LLC Purchases 464,755 Shares of Spirit Aerosystems Holdings, Inc. $SPR

Key Points

• AQR Arbitrage LLC increased its stake in Spirit Aerosystems Holdings, Inc. by 73.9% in the first quarter, owning over 1 million shares valued at approximately $37.6 million.
• Spirit Aerosystems reported a loss of ($3.34) EPS in its latest quarterly earnings, significantly missing analyst expectations.
• The stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $38.63, following recent upgrades from various analysts.

AQR Arbitrage LLC lifted its stake in shares of Spirit Aerosystems Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SPR - Free Report) by 73.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,093,536 shares of the aerospace company's stock after acquiring an additional 464,755 shares during the quarter. Spirit Aerosystems accounts for 0.9% of AQR Arbitrage LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. AQR Arbitrage LLC owned 0.93% of Spirit Aerosystems worth $37,640,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of SPR. Byrne Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Spirit Aerosystems by 128.2% during the 1st quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 4,679 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 2,629 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Spirit Aerosystems by 48.0% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 6,061 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $209,000 after acquiring an additional 1,967 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers bought a new stake in shares of Spirit Aerosystems during the 1st quarter worth $211,000. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Spirit Aerosystems by 23.1% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 7,055 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 1,322 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Spirit Aerosystems by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 7,731 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $263,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares in the last quarter. 93.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Spirit Aerosystems Trading Down 1.0%

Spirit Aerosystems stock traded down $0.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $40.78. 1,277,298 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 735,441. The stock has a market cap of $4.79 billion, a P/E ratio of -2.04 and a beta of 1.74. Spirit Aerosystems Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $27.00 and a 1-year high of $42.33. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $36.98.

Spirit Aerosystems (NYSE:SPR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The aerospace company reported ($3.34) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.52) by ($2.82). The business had revenue of $1.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.82 billion. Spirit Aerosystems's revenue was up 9.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($2.73) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Spirit Aerosystems Holdings, Inc. will post -11.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SPR. Susquehanna increased their target price on Spirit Aerosystems from $37.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Spirit Aerosystems from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Hold 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 $38.63.

Spirit Aerosystems Profile

Spirit AeroSystems Holdings, Inc engages in the design, engineering, manufacture, and marketing of commercial aerostructures worldwide. It operates through three segments: Commercial, Defense & Space, and Aftermarket. The Commercial segment offers forward, mid, and rear fuselage sections and systems, floor beams, nacelles, struts/pylons, horizontal and vertical stabilizers, flaps and slats flight control surfaces, wing structures, and wing systems.