Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL) Short Interest Up 7.4% in December

Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,890,000 shares, a growth of 7.4% from the November 30th total of 2,690,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 668,600 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.3 days. Approximately 2.8% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Air Lease in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Air Lease from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.60.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Air Lease

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Air Lease in the third quarter valued at $872,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Air Lease by 5.0% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,433,676 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $115,673,000 after purchasing an additional 115,293 shares during the period. BCGM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Air Lease during the third quarter worth about $1,899,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its stake in shares of Air Lease by 7.7% in the second quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 227,921 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $10,833,000 after purchasing an additional 16,281 shares during the period. Finally, Hahn Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Air Lease by 20.2% in the second quarter. Hahn Capital Management LLC now owns 131,470 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $6,249,000 after purchasing an additional 22,053 shares in the last quarter. 94.59% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Air Lease Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:AL traded up $0.17 on Wednesday, reaching $48.21. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 388,160 shares, compared to its average volume of 923,321. Air Lease has a 12-month low of $39.15 and a 12-month high of $52.31. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $48.45 and a 200 day moving average price of $46.50. The firm has a market cap of $5.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.63.

Air Lease Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 9th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 12th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.83%. This is a boost from Air Lease’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Air Lease’s dividend payout ratio is presently 20.05%.

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.