Principal Financial Group Inc. Decreases Position in AAR Corp. (NYSE:AIR)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in shares of AAR Corp. (NYSE:AIR - Free Report) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 489,445 shares of the aerospace company's stock after selling 10,755 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 1.36% of AAR worth $29,993,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AIR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in AAR by 9.7% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 40,737 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $2,663,000 after buying an additional 3,612 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new position in AAR in the fourth quarter valued at $1,539,000. Shelton Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of AAR in the 4th quarter valued at $1,068,000. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in shares of AAR by 269.4% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 66,223 shares of the aerospace company's stock valued at $4,328,000 after acquiring an additional 48,298 shares during the period. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of AAR by 4.1% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 22,859 shares of the aerospace company's stock worth $1,494,000 after purchasing an additional 893 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.74% of the company's stock.

AAR Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AIR traded up $0.30 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $63.72. The company had a trading volume of 37,327 shares, compared to its average volume of 235,012. The business's 50-day moving average is $65.71 and its 200 day moving average is $65.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 1.27 and a current ratio of 2.68. The company has a market cap of $2.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 227.57 and a beta of 1.61. AAR Corp. has a 52 week low of $54.71 and a 52 week high of $76.34.

AAR (NYSE:AIR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 7th. The aerospace company reported $0.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $686.10 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $654.47 million. AAR had a net margin of 0.41% and a return on equity of 10.46%. AAR's revenue for the quarter was up 25.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.81 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that AAR Corp. will post 3.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AAR

In related news, CEO John Mcclain Holmes III sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.81, for a total value of $354,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 341,680 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,194,360.80. This trade represents a 1.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Sean M. Gillen sold 17,385 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.33, for a total transaction of $1,153,147.05. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 72,326 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,797,383.58. This trade represents a 19.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 185,793 shares of company stock worth $12,538,396 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 4.10% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AIR. StockNews.com cut AAR from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of AAR in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, KeyCorp initiated coverage on AAR in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $83.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.50.

AAR Profile

AAR Corp. provides products and services to commercial aviation, government, and defense markets worldwide. The Parts Supply segment leases and sells aircraft components and replacement parts. The Repair & Engineering segment provides airframe maintenance services, such as airframe inspection, painting, line maintenance, airframe modification, structural repair, avionics service and installation, exterior and interior refurbishment, and engineering and support services; component repair services comprising maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services, engine and airframe accessories, and interior refurbishment; and landing gear overhaul services, including repair services on wheels and brakes.