Air Lease (NYSE:AL) CEO John Plueger Sells 155,821 Shares

Air Lease Corporation (NYSE:AL) CEO John Plueger sold 155,821 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.03, for a total value of $9,977,218.63. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 725,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,482,002.23. This trade represents a 17.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Air Lease Price Performance

Shares of AL stock traded down $0.01 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $63.96. 2,249,038 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,086,492. Air Lease Corporation has a twelve month low of $38.25 and a twelve month high of $64.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.42, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.43. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $63.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $60.73. The firm has a market cap of $7.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.41 and a beta of 1.19.

Air Lease (NYSE:AL) last announced its earnings results on Monday, November 3rd. The transportation company reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.16 by $0.13. Air Lease had a return on equity of 7.84% and a net margin of 35.08%.The business had revenue of $725.39 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $744.59 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.82 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Air Lease Corporation will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Lease Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 4th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 4th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Air Lease’s payout ratio is 10.20%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AL. Zacks Research downgraded Air Lease from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. TD Cowen downgraded Air Lease from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Cowen lowered Air Lease from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Air Lease from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $65.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, September 3rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Air Lease in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $59.50.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Lease

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS raised its holdings in Air Lease by 7.4% during the second quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS now owns 21,900 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,285,000 after buying an additional 1,500 shares in the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Lease by 11.3% during the 1st quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 45,244 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $2,186,000 after acquiring an additional 4,601 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC acquired a new position in shares of Air Lease during the 1st quarter valued at about $987,000. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Air Lease in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $452,000. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its holdings in Air Lease by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 353,072 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $17,057,000 after purchasing an additional 27,065 shares during the last quarter. 94.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Air Lease

Air Lease Corporation, an aircraft leasing company, engages in the purchase and leasing of commercial jet aircraft to airlines worldwide. It sells aircraft from its fleet to third parties, including other leasing companies, financial services companies, airlines, and other investors. The company provides fleet management services to investors and owners of aircraft portfolios.