First Trust Advisors LP Lowers Stock Position in Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL)

First Trust Advisors LP cut its position in shares of Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL – Get Rating) by 8.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 574,290 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 50,166 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned 0.52% of Air Lease worth $17,808,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AL. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in Air Lease by 140.6% during the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 126,761 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $5,642,000 after purchasing an additional 74,067 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Air Lease during the first quarter worth about $96,000. BlackRock Inc. increased its position in Air Lease by 1.6% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 5,763,177 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $257,324,000 after purchasing an additional 90,225 shares during the last quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can increased its position in Air Lease by 7.3% during the first quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 7,825 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $368,000 after purchasing an additional 535 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its position in Air Lease by 7.3% during the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 96,738 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $4,324,000 after purchasing an additional 6,568 shares during the last quarter. 88.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Air Lease

In related news, EVP Grant A. Levy sold 10,000 shares of Air Lease stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.27, for a total value of $392,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 146,693 shares in the company, valued at $5,760,634.11. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 6.57% of the company’s stock.

Air Lease Trading Down 4.3 %

Shares of AL stock opened at $39.72 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.80, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a current ratio of 1.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.41 billion, a P/E ratio of -34.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.36 and a beta of 1.79. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $43.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $38.31. Air Lease Co. has a fifty-two week low of $29.75 and a fifty-two week high of $47.00.

Air Lease Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 12th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 16th will be issued a $0.20 dividend. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 15th. Air Lease’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently -69.57%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Credit Suisse Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of Air Lease in a research report on Friday, February 17th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Air Lease from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Air Lease in a research report on Tuesday, February 28th. They set a “buy” rating and a $59.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Air Lease from $55.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Friday, January 6th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, Air Lease presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $54.00.

Air Lease Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Air Lease Corp. engages in the provision of aircraft leasing business. It focuses on purchasing new commercial jet transport aircraft directly from aircraft manufacturers, and leasing those aircraft to airlines throughout the world with the intention to generate attractive returns on equity. The company was founded by Steven F.