Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Purchases 13,605 Shares of Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB grew its holdings in Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL - Free Report) by 1,980.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,292 shares of the transportation company's stock after buying an additional 13,605 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB's holdings in Air Lease were worth $689,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in shares of Air Lease during the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Air Lease by 55.5% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,868 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 667 shares during the period. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in shares of Air Lease by 20.0% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 3,345 shares of the transportation company's stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 557 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its position in Air Lease by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 3,468 shares of the transportation company's stock valued at $157,000 after buying an additional 389 shares during the period. Finally, Rehmann Capital Advisory Group purchased a new stake in Air Lease in the 3rd quarter valued at about $202,000. 94.59% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Air Lease Stock Up 6.7 %

Shares of NYSE:AL traded up $3.11 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $49.46. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,095,357 shares, compared to its average volume of 636,772. Air Lease Co. has a 52 week low of $39.35 and a 52 week high of $52.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The company has a market capitalization of $5.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.59. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $47.41 and its 200 day moving average price is $46.25.

Air Lease (NYSE:AL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The transportation company reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.44. Air Lease had a net margin of 19.58% and a return on equity of 8.92%. As a group, research analysts expect that Air Lease Co. will post 4.65 EPS for the current year.

Air Lease Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be issued a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.78%. Air Lease's dividend payout ratio is currently 20.05%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Air Lease in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Air Lease from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $57.60.

Air Lease Company Profile

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.