Sit Investment Associates Inc. Has $4.41 Million Stock Position in Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL)

Sit Investment Associates Inc. lessened its position in shares of Air Lease Co. (NYSE:AL) by 38.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 91,565 shares of the transportation company’s stock after selling 58,400 shares during the quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc.’s holdings in Air Lease were worth $4,414,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Air Lease during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Air Lease during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its holdings in Air Lease by 5,245.0% in the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 1,069 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 1,049 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Air Lease by 1,506.8% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,189 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 1,115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its holdings in Air Lease by 679.7% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,497 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 1,305 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.59% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America downgraded Air Lease from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $72.00 to $50.00 in a research note on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group set a $50.00 target price on Air Lease in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Air Lease from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Air Lease presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.67.

Air Lease Stock Down 6.9 %

NYSE:AL opened at $42.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.61, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $46.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $46.99. Air Lease Co. has a 1 year low of $39.43 and a 1 year high of $52.31.

Air Lease (NYSE:AL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The transportation company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.44. Air Lease had a return on equity of 8.01% and a net margin of 15.65%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Air Lease Co. will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Air Lease Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 7th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 18th will be given a $0.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 18th. This represents a $0.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. Air Lease’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.43%.

Air Lease Profile

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.