Short Interest in FTAI Aviation Ltd. (NASDAQ:FTAI) Decreases By 14.9%

Key Points

• Short interest decreased 14.9% — short interest fell to 4,739,156 shares as of March 31 (about 4.7% of shares short) with a short-interest ratio of 3.0 days.
• Wall Street is broadly bullish: 11 Buy, 1 Hold with an average target of $295.78 and several firms raising targets up to $350.
• Institutions own ~88.96% of the stock and JPMorgan raised its stake ~396.7% to 831,414 shares; the company missed quarterly EPS and revenue estimates (EPS $1.08 vs $1.22; revenue $662.0M vs $710.4M) but revenue rose 32.7% year-over-year and the stock trades near $259.13.

FTAI Aviation Ltd. (NASDAQ:FTAI - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant decline in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totaling 4,739,156 shares, a decline of 14.9% from the March 15th total of 5,571,113 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,579,064 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.0 days. Approximately 4.7% of the company's stock are short sold.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on FTAI shares. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of FTAI Aviation from $270.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $350.00 price objective on shares of FTAI Aviation in a research note on Monday, February 9th. Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $225.00 price objective on shares of FTAI Aviation in a research note on Wednesday, December 31st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of FTAI Aviation from $260.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of FTAI Aviation from $266.00 to $293.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 24th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $295.78.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. LDR Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of FTAI Aviation during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,102,000. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new stake in FTAI Aviation during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,846,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in FTAI Aviation by 396.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 831,414 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $138,730,000 after buying an additional 664,037 shares during the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in FTAI Aviation during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,056,000. Finally, Hiddenite Capital Partners LP increased its holdings in FTAI Aviation by 12.9% during the third quarter. Hiddenite Capital Partners LP now owns 79,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $13,182,000 after buying an additional 9,000 shares during the last quarter. 88.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

FTAI Aviation Stock Up 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ FTAI traded up $5.21 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $259.13. The stock had a trading volume of 1,205,644 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,726,581. The business's 50 day moving average is $263.07 and its 200-day moving average is $218.93. The company has a market cap of $26.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.09, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.59. FTAI Aviation has a 52 week low of $85.23 and a 52 week high of $323.51. The company has a quick ratio of 2.30, a current ratio of 5.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 10.32.

FTAI Aviation (NASDAQ:FTAI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The financial services provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.22 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $662.03 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $710.37 million. FTAI Aviation had a return on equity of 257.07% and a net margin of 19.98%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 32.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.84 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that FTAI Aviation will post 2.2 EPS for the current year.

FTAI Aviation Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 13th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 13th. FTAI Aviation's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.63%.

FTAI Aviation Company Profile

FTAI Aviation NASDAQ: FTAI is a commercial aircraft leasing company that acquires, manages and leases wide-body jet aircraft to airlines globally. The company's portfolio is focused on modern, fuel-efficient Boeing models, including the 767, 777 and 787 families, which are deployed under long-term operating leases. By concentrating on in-demand wide-body assets, FTAI Aviation seeks to deliver stable cash flows through lease rentals and maintenance reserve collections while providing airlines with flexible fleet solutions.

In addition to lease origination, FTAI Aviation offers end-to-end asset management services.

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