NS Partners Ltd Invests $209,000 in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER)

NS Partners Ltd purchased a new stake in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 2,186 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $209,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AER. Toth Financial Advisory Corp bought a new position in shares of AerCap in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new position in AerCap during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC bought a new stake in AerCap in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of AerCap in the 3rd quarter valued at $64,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in AerCap during the 3rd quarter worth $66,000. 96.42% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on AER. Susquehanna boosted their target price on AerCap from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $119.00 price target on shares of AerCap in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price target (up previously from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of AerCap from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.43.

AerCap Price Performance

Shares of AER opened at $99.63 on Friday. 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 twelve month low of $80.90 and a twelve month high of $107.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $18.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.81. The company has a 50 day moving average of $97.79 and a 200-day moving average of $96.26.

AerCap (NYSE:AER) last released 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. AerCap had a return on equity of 13.98% and a net margin of 32.38%. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AerCap Holdings will post 11.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AerCap Increases Dividend

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

AerCap announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, February 26th that permits the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 4.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

AerCap 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.