Charles Iv Willis Sells 16,700 Shares of Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) Stock

Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:WLFC) Chairman Charles Iv Willis sold 16,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $55.12, for a total transaction of $920,504.00. Following the transaction, the chairman directly owned 2,519,143 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $138,855,162.16. The trade was a 0.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Willis Lease Finance Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:WLFC traded up $0.78 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $55.15. The stock had a trading volume of 194,858 shares, compared to its average volume of 277,651. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.68 and its 200 day simple moving average is $65.49. Willis Lease Finance Corporation has a 1-year low of $38.00 and a 1-year high of $81.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.83 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.63.

Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The transportation company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.41. Willis Lease Finance had a return on equity of 14.11% and a net margin of 11.80%.The business had revenue of $194.02 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $175.00 million.

Willis Lease Finance Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th were given a dividend of $0.133 per share. This represents a $0.53 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 11th. Willis Lease Finance’s payout ratio is 13.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WLFC. Weiss Ratings lowered Willis Lease Finance from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. UBS Group set a $71.00 target price on shares of Willis Lease Finance in a research report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Freedom Capital raised shares of Willis Lease Finance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $71.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Willis Lease Finance

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System increased its position in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 27,701.6% during the 2nd quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 750,922 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $171,811,000 after purchasing an additional 748,221 shares during the period. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance in the second quarter valued at $360,000. AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in Willis Lease Finance during the second quarter valued at about $562,000. Susquehanna Advisors Group Inc. bought a new position in Willis Lease Finance during the second quarter valued at about $1,185,000. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in Willis Lease Finance during the second quarter worth about $526,000. 93.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Willis Lease Finance

Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ: WLFC) is an independent global provider of aircraft engine leasing, trading and aftermarket services. Founded in 1991 and headquartered in the United States, the company specializes in offering short- and long-term operating leases for jet engines and auxiliary power units. Through its broad engine portfolio, Willis Lease Finance supports a wide range of commercial aircraft across various operators, including major airlines, regional carriers and other leasing companies.

In addition to leasing solutions, Willis Lease Finance offers comprehensive engine trading and asset management services.