Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) Chairman Sells $1,580,975.00 in Stock

Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:WLFC) Chairman Charles Iv Willis sold 27,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.49, for a total transaction of $1,580,975.00. Following the sale, the chairman owned 2,584,943 shares in the company, valued at approximately $148,608,373.07. The trade was a 1.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Willis Lease Finance Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ WLFC opened at $54.37 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.64 and a beta of 0.74. Willis Lease Finance Corporation has a twelve month low of $38.00 and a twelve month high of $81.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.27. The company has a 50 day moving average of $69.84 and a 200 day moving average of $65.52.

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

Willis Lease Finance Cuts Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WLFC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings downgraded 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 price target on shares of Willis Lease Finance in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Willis Lease Finance from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $71.00.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WLFC. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Willis Lease Finance during the 2nd quarter worth $360,000. AXQ Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance in the 2nd quarter worth $562,000. Susquehanna Advisors Group Inc. purchased a new position in Willis Lease Finance during the second quarter valued at $1,185,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of Willis Lease Finance during the 2nd quarter valued at about $526,000. Finally, Navellier & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Willis Lease Finance during the second quarter valued at approximately $229,000. 93.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.