Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) EVP Scott Flaherty Sells 18,695 Shares of Stock

Key Points

• Executive sale: EVP Scott Flaherty sold 18,695 shares at an average price of $54.57, generating approximately $1.02 million. His remaining ownership fell 7.75% to 222,650 shares.
• Stock performance and earnings: WLFC traded near $54.31, well below its 12-month high of $81.54. The company nevertheless beat quarterly earnings estimates, reporting $1.31 in EPS versus the $0.90 consensus and revenue of $192.83 million versus $175 million expected.
• Analyst outlook: Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $75.50, although ratings range from Strong Buy to Hold. Institutional investors own a substantial 93.7% of the company’s shares.

Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:WLFC - Get Free Report) EVP Scott Flaherty sold 18,695 shares of Willis Lease Finance stock in a transaction on Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.57, for a total transaction of $1,020,186.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 222,650 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,150,010.50. This represents a 7.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Willis Lease Finance Stock Performance

Willis Lease Finance stock traded up $0.25 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $54.31. 150,747 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 268,881. Willis Lease Finance Corporation has a twelve month low of $38.00 and a twelve month high of $81.54. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $64.17 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $64.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.63. The firm has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a PE ratio of 13.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.72.

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 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 business had revenue of $192.83 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $175.00 million. Equities analysts predict that Willis Lease Finance Corporation will post 5.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Willis Lease Finance Cuts Dividend

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willis Lease Finance

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Willis Lease Finance by 39.3% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $555,000 after buying an additional 920 shares during the period. Navellier & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Willis Lease Finance in the 2nd quarter valued at about $229,000. Cetera Investment Advisers purchased a new stake in Willis Lease Finance in the 1st quarter valued at about $220,000. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Willis Lease Finance during the 2nd quarter valued at about $321,000. Finally, Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in shares of Willis Lease Finance during the 2nd quarter valued at about $343,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.70% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on WLFC. Zacks Research raised shares of Willis Lease Finance to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 9th. UBS Group set a $71.00 price target on shares of Willis Lease Finance in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Weiss Ratings lowered Willis Lease Finance from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $80.00 price target on Willis Lease Finance and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised Willis Lease Finance from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.50.

About Willis Lease Finance

Willis Lease Finance Corporation is an aviation services company that provides commercial aircraft engines, auxiliary power units and related equipment to airlines, aircraft operators and other aviation customers. The company's leasing activities include short-term and long-term operating leases, as well as engine and equipment financing solutions designed to support fleet operations and maintenance planning.

In addition to leasing, Willis Lease Finance offers engine management, maintenance and asset management services.

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