Insider Selling: Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) CEO Sells $808,500.00 in Stock

Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:WLFC) CEO Austin Willis sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.90, for a total value of $808,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 420,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,685,863.20. This represents a 3.44% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Austin Chandler Willis also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, August 3rd, Austin Willis sold 15,000 shares of Willis Lease Finance stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.34, for a total value of $1,100,100.00.
• On Wednesday, July 1st, Austin Willis sold 15,552 shares of Willis Lease Finance stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.69, for a total value of $1,161,578.88.

Willis Lease Finance Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:WLFC traded up $0.61 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $55.51. 113,142 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 273,397. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $67.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $64.92. Willis Lease Finance Corporation has a 12-month low of $38.00 and a 12-month high of $81.54. The stock has a market cap of $1.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.92 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27.

Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The transportation company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $175.00 million.

Willis Lease Finance Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 11th were issued a $0.133 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 11th. This represents a $0.53 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Willis Lease Finance’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.28%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Willis Lease Finance

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Willis Lease Finance during the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Willis Lease Finance by 742.5% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 337 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Willis Lease Finance during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 197.9% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 694 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $95,000 after purchasing an additional 461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $109,000. Institutional investors own 93.70% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on WLFC. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Willis Lease Finance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. UBS Group set a $71.00 price objective on shares of Willis Lease Finance in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Willis Lease Finance from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Willis Lease Finance presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $71.00.

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.