Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) Chairman Charles Iv Willis Sells 16,700 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Chairman Charles Iv Willis sold 16,700 WLFC shares at an average price of $55.12, generating approximately $920,504. He retained 2,519,143 shares, with the sale reducing his ownership by 0.66%.
• Willis Lease Finance’s shares rose 1.4% to $55.15, while the company reported quarterly EPS of $1.31, beating estimates of $0.90, and revenue of $194.02 million versus expectations of $175 million.
• The company pays an annualized dividend of $0.53 per share, yielding about 1.0%. Analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with an average price target of $71, although ratings included both a Strong Buy and a Hold.

Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:WLFC - Get Free Report) Chairman Charles Iv Willis sold 16,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.12, for a total transaction of $920,504.00. Following the transaction, the chairman owned 2,519,143 shares in the company, valued at $138,855,162.16. This trade represents a 0.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Willis Lease Finance Stock Up 1.4%

WLFC stock traded up $0.78 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $55.15. 194,858 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 277,651. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.68 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.49. The company has a market capitalization of $1.17 billion, a PE ratio of 13.83 and a beta of 0.74. Willis Lease Finance Corporation has a twelve month low of $38.00 and a twelve month high of $81.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27.

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

Willis Lease Finance Cuts Dividend

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

Institutional Trading of Willis Lease Finance

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in Willis Lease Finance by 27,701.6% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 750,922 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $171,811,000 after purchasing an additional 748,221 shares during the period. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in Willis Lease Finance in the second quarter worth $68,932,000. Four Tree Island Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Willis Lease Finance in the second quarter valued at $24,747,000. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Willis Lease Finance by 9.8% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 101,386 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $13,899,000 after buying an additional 9,052 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UBS Group AG boosted its holdings in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 15.0% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 92,194 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $12,639,000 after acquiring an additional 12,000 shares during the period. 93.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on WLFC shares. UBS Group set a $71.00 price objective on Willis Lease Finance in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Willis Lease Finance from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Willis Lease Finance from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently 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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