Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) Downgraded by Freedom Capital to Hold

Key Points

• Analyst rating change: Freedom Capital downgraded WLFC from "strong-buy" to "hold" while Weiss Ratings upgraded it to "buy", leaving a consensus rating of Moderate Buy (one Buy, one Hold).
• Quarterly beat: Willis Lease reported EPS $4.03 vs. $3.02 expected and revenue $194.35M vs. $175.0M expected, with a 15.72% net margin and 19.22% return on equity.
• Insider selling: Chairman Charles F. Iv and CEO Austin Chandler Willis sold shares in late March/early April, and insiders disposed of about 19,397 shares (~$3.33M) over the past three months.

Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Freedom Capital from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Willis Lease Finance from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Willis Lease Finance Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WLFC opened at $225.47 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 3.52, a current ratio of 2.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.25. Willis Lease Finance has a fifty-two week low of $114.01 and a fifty-two week high of $239.44. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $188.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $163.76. The company has a market cap of $1.59 billion, a PE ratio of 13.70 and a beta of 0.81.

Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The transportation company reported $4.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.02 by $1.01. Willis Lease Finance had a net margin of 15.72% and a return on equity of 19.22%. The business had revenue of $194.35 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $175.00 million.

Insider Transactions at Willis Lease Finance

In other Willis Lease Finance news, Chairman Charles F. Iv Willis sold 9,727 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.09, for a total transaction of $1,654,465.43. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman directly owned 933,234 shares of the company's stock, valued at $158,733,771.06. The trade was a 1.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Austin Chandler Willis sold 3,400 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $173.55, for a total transaction of $590,070.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 183,475 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,842,086.25. The trade was a 1.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 19,397 shares of company stock valued at $3,333,181 over the last three months. 53.32% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 1,498.3% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 66,008 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $9,049,000 after acquiring an additional 61,878 shares during the period. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $8,073,000. M3F Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. M3F Inc. now owns 606,026 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $83,080,000 after acquiring an additional 39,085 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 357.4% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 40,289 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $5,752,000 after acquiring an additional 31,480 shares during the period. Finally, Denali Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 780.3% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 33,452 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $4,537,000 after acquiring an additional 29,652 shares during the period. 93.70% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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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