HighTower Advisors LLC Has $295,000 Holdings in Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL)

HighTower Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL) by 17.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 6,110 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 1,259 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Air Lease were worth $295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new stake in shares of Air Lease during the third quarter worth $31,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Air Lease during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its stake in Air Lease by 1,506.8% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,189 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 1,115 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Air Lease by 679.7% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,497 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 1,305 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Air Lease by 2,018.9% in the fourth quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,246 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $108,000 after purchasing an additional 2,140 shares during the last quarter. 94.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America lowered Air Lease from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $72.00 to $50.00 in a report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group set a $50.00 price target on shares of Air Lease in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Air Lease from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Air Lease has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.67.

Air Lease Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE AL opened at $48.44 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $47.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $46.98. Air Lease Co. has a 52-week low of $39.43 and a 52-week high of $52.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.37. The company has a market capitalization of $5.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.60.

Air Lease (NYSE:AL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The transportation company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.44. Air Lease had a net margin of 15.65% and a return on equity of 8.01%. Equities analysts forecast that Air Lease Co. 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 Monday, April 7th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.82%. Air Lease’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.43%.

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.