Two Sigma Advisers LP Buys 31,900 Shares of Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL)

Two Sigma Advisers LP increased its stake in Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL - Free Report) by 27.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 147,200 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 31,900 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned about 0.13% of Air Lease worth $7,097,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in Air Lease by 104.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 86,033 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $3,897,000 after buying an additional 43,981 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its stake in Air Lease by 27.6% during the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 26,720 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $1,288,000 after acquiring an additional 5,783 shares in the last quarter. Zweig DiMenna Associates LLC raised its stake in Air Lease by 230.0% during the 4th quarter. Zweig DiMenna Associates LLC now owns 66,000 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $3,182,000 after acquiring an additional 46,000 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Air Lease by 39.9% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 4,681 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $226,000 after purchasing an additional 1,336 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its position in shares of Air Lease by 1,980.3% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 14,292 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $689,000 after purchasing an additional 13,605 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.59% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Grant A. Levy sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.85, for a total value of $568,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 146,316 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,318,064.60. This represents a 6.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AL has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen raised Air Lease from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Air Lease from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. UBS Group set a $50.00 price objective on Air Lease in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Bank of America lowered Air Lease from a "buy" rating to an "underperform" rating and cut their target price for the company from $72.00 to $50.00 in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded Air Lease from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $45.00 to $68.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. 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.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $57.43.

Air Lease Stock Performance

AL traded up $0.06 on Thursday, hitting $57.99. 171,531 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 782,996. Air Lease Co. has a 52 week low of $38.25 and a 52 week high of $59.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.48 billion, a PE ratio of 17.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.33. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $48.88 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $48.19.

Air Lease (NYSE:AL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The transportation company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 period in the previous year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 11.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Air Lease Co. will post 5.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Air Lease Dividend Announcement

The business 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 $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 4th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. Air Lease's dividend payout ratio is currently 15.38%.

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.