Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Trims Stake in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER)

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lessened its stake in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER - Free Report) by 63.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 520,785 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 917,622 shares during the quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership owned 0.26% of AerCap worth $49,839,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AER. Toth Financial Advisory Corp acquired a new stake in AerCap in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in AerCap during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in AerCap in the third quarter valued at approximately $66,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC purchased a new position in AerCap in the third quarter valued at approximately $78,000. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC increased its stake in AerCap by 1,148.5% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 1,261 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,160 shares during the last quarter. 96.42% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of AerCap from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group downgraded AerCap to an "underperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on AerCap from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and set a $115.00 target price (up from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $117.43.

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AerCap Stock Performance

NYSE AER traded down $0.03 on Monday, hitting $102.14. 2,175,398 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,337,910. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $99.60 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $97.14. AerCap Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $81.93 and a fifty-two week high of $107.36. The firm has a market cap of $19.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

AerCap (NYSE:AER - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $3.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.75. AerCap had a net margin of 32.38% and a return on equity of 13.98%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.97 billion. On average, research analysts expect that AerCap Holdings will post 11.29 EPS for the current year.

AerCap Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.06%. This is an increase from AerCap's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. AerCap's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.99%.

AerCap announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

AerCap Company Profile

AerCap Holdings N.V. engages in the lease, financing, sale, and management of commercial flight equipment in China, Hong Kong, Macau, the United States, Ireland, and internationally. The company offers aircraft asset management services, such as remarketing aircraft and engines; collecting rental and maintenance rent payments, monitoring aircraft maintenance, monitoring and enforcing contract compliance, and accepting delivery and redelivery of aircraft and engines; and conducting ongoing lessee financial performance reviews.