Swiss National Bank Sells 10,800 Shares of AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER)

Swiss National Bank reduced its holdings in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER - Free Report) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 570,700 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 10,800 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.29% of AerCap worth $54,616,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its position in AerCap by 62.8% in the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 455,471 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $43,589,000 after purchasing an additional 175,668 shares during the last quarter. PFG Advisors raised its position in shares of AerCap by 15.8% during the 4th quarter. PFG Advisors now owns 4,309 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $412,000 after buying an additional 588 shares in the last quarter. Glaxis Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of AerCap during the 4th quarter worth about $1,474,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. raised its position in shares of AerCap by 77.5% during the 4th quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 8,199 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $785,000 after buying an additional 3,580 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AGF Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of AerCap by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 1,100,293 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $105,298,000 after buying an additional 3,511 shares in the last quarter. 96.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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AerCap Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of AerCap stock traded up $1.31 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $104.35. The stock had a trading volume of 1,384,027 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,429,949. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $98.40 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.53. The company has a market capitalization of $19.49 billion, a PE ratio of 8.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. AerCap Holdings has a 1 year low of $81.93 and a 1 year high of $107.36.

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

AerCap announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, February 26th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

AerCap Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. This is a boost from AerCap's previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. AerCap's payout ratio is 9.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and set a $115.00 price target (up from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $119.00 price target on shares of AerCap in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. UBS Group downgraded shares of AerCap to an "underperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of AerCap from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on shares of AerCap from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AerCap has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $117.43.

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.