AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER) Shares Purchased by Aristides Capital LLC

Aristides Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER) by 12.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 33,630 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,630 shares during the quarter. AerCap comprises about 0.7% of Aristides Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Aristides Capital LLC’s holdings in AerCap were worth $3,218,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Toth Financial Advisory Corp purchased a new position in AerCap during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Pinpoint Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of AerCap in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new position in AerCap in the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new stake in AerCap during the third quarter valued at about $66,000. Finally, TD Private Client Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in AerCap during the third quarter worth about $78,000. 96.42% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AerCap Trading Down 9.3 %

AER opened at $89.51 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.72 billion, a PE ratio of 7.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.45. 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 Holdings has a 12-month low of $81.93 and a 12-month high of $107.36. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $100.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.31.

AerCap (NYSE:AER) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $3.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.56 by $0.75. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. AerCap had a net margin of 32.38% and a return on equity of 13.98%. As a group, research analysts expect that AerCap Holdings will post 11.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AerCap declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 26th that allows the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

AerCap Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 12th were issued a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. This is an increase from AerCap’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 12th. AerCap’s payout ratio is 9.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AER has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Bank of America lifted their price objective on AerCap from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of AerCap from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group lowered shares of AerCap to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 target price (up previously from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a report on Thursday, February 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $117.43.

About AerCap

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.