Insider Selling: Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) Chairman Sells $859,716.00 in Stock

Key Points

• Willis Lease Finance Chairman Charles Iv Willis sold 15,600 shares for approximately $859,716, reducing his direct ownership by 0.62% to 2.49 million shares.
• WLFC shares rose 0.4% to $55.11, while the company reported quarterly earnings of $1.31 per share and revenue of $194.02 million, both above analyst expectations.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $71, despite one recent downgrade; institutional investors own 93.7% of the stock.

Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:WLFC - Get Free Report) Chairman Charles Iv Willis sold 15,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.11, for a total value of $859,716.00. Following the sale, the chairman directly owned 2,492,143 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $137,342,000.73. The trade was a 0.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Willis Lease Finance Stock Up 0.4%

WLFC stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $55.11. 89,827 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 275,057. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.63. Willis Lease Finance Corporation has a 1-year low of $38.00 and a 1-year high of $81.54. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $69.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $65.27. The firm has a market cap of $1.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.82 and a beta of 0.74.

Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The transportation company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.41. Willis Lease Finance had a net margin of 11.80% and a return on equity of 14.11%. The company had revenue of $194.02 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $175.00 million.

Willis Lease Finance Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 11th were paid a $0.133 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $0.53 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. Willis Lease Finance's dividend payout ratio is presently 13.28%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WLFC. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. raised its position in Willis Lease Finance by 742.5% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 337 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Willis Lease Finance during the second quarter worth $54,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Willis Lease Finance by 197.9% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 694 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main acquired a new stake in Willis Lease Finance in the second quarter valued at $109,000. 93.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WLFC has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded Willis Lease Finance from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Freedom Capital raised Willis Lease Finance from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, UBS Group set a $71.00 price objective on Willis Lease Finance in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Willis Lease Finance has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $71.00.

About Willis Lease Finance

Willis Lease Finance Corporation NASDAQ: WLFC is an independent global provider of aircraft engine leasing, trading and aftermarket services. Founded in 1991 and headquartered in the United States, the company specializes in offering short- and long-term operating leases for jet engines and auxiliary power units. Through its broad engine portfolio, Willis Lease Finance supports a wide range of commercial aircraft across various operators, including major airlines, regional carriers and other leasing companies.

In addition to leasing solutions, Willis Lease Finance offers comprehensive engine trading and asset management services.

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