PFG Advisors Raises Stake in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER)

PFG Advisors boosted its position in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER) by 15.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,309 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 588 shares during the period. PFG Advisors’ holdings in AerCap were worth $412,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Glaxis Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in AerCap in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,474,000. Moors & Cabot Inc. boosted its position in AerCap by 77.5% in the 4th quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 8,199 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $785,000 after purchasing an additional 3,580 shares in the last quarter. AGF Management Ltd. boosted its position in AerCap by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. AGF Management Ltd. now owns 1,100,293 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $105,298,000 after purchasing an additional 3,511 shares in the last quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its position in AerCap by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 2,934,185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $280,802,000 after purchasing an additional 86,548 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Advisors LLC boosted its position in AerCap by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 6,336 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $606,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.42% of the company’s stock.

AerCap Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of AER stock opened at $101.37 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $97.99 and its two-hundred day moving average is $96.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.03, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.83. AerCap Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $81.93 and a fifty-two week high of $107.36.

AerCap (NYSE:AER) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $3.31 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. Research analysts expect that AerCap Holdings will post 11.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AerCap Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.07%. This is an increase from AerCap’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. AerCap’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.99%.

AerCap announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Wednesday, February 26th that allows the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 4.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on AER. UBS Group lowered AerCap to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective (up previously from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on AerCap from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $119.00 target price on shares of AerCap in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on AerCap from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.