Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) Hits New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:WLFC) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $192.50 and last traded at $193.5050, with a volume of 1319 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $63.88.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on WLFC. Freedom Capital cut Willis Lease Finance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings cut Willis Lease Finance from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Willis Lease Finance Stock Up 203.4%

The company has a current ratio of 2.43, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.25. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $66.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.26. The company has a market cap of $1.36 billion, a PE ratio of 11.77 and a beta of 0.72.

Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The transportation company reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.33. The business had revenue of $194.35 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $175.00 million. Willis Lease Finance had a net margin of 15.72% and a return on equity of 19.22%.

Willis Lease Finance Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 11th were paid a dividend of $0.1333 per share. This represents a $0.53 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. Willis Lease Finance’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.72%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Willis Lease Finance news, CEO Austin Chandler Willis sold 15,552 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.69, for a total value of $1,161,578.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 450,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,676,824.72. This represents a 3.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 53.32% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WLFC. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 1,498.3% in the 3rd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 66,008 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $9,049,000 after acquiring an additional 61,878 shares during the last quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Willis Lease Finance during the 2nd quarter worth $8,073,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 357.4% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 40,289 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $5,752,000 after acquiring an additional 31,480 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 780.3% during the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 33,452 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $4,537,000 after acquiring an additional 29,652 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 951.4% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 27,346 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,904,000 after purchasing an additional 24,745 shares during the period. 93.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Willis Lease Finance Company Profile

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.