Insider Selling: Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) EVP Sells 2,979 Shares of Stock

Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:WLFC) EVP Scott Flaherty sold 2,979 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $56.18, for a total value of $167,360.22. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 241,345 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,558,762.10. The trade was a 1.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website.

Willis Lease Finance Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of Willis Lease Finance stock traded up $0.25 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $54.31. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 150,747 shares, compared to its average volume of 268,881. Willis Lease Finance Corporation has a 1-year low of $38.00 and a 1-year 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 firm has a market capitalization of $1.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.62, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $64.22.

Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The transportation company reported $1.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.41. The firm had revenue of $192.83 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $175.00 million. Willis Lease Finance had a return on equity of 14.11% and a net margin of 11.80%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Willis Lease Finance Corporation will post 5.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Willis Lease Finance Cuts Dividend

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis 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

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LSV Asset Management bought a new position in Willis Lease Finance during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,462,000. Four Tree Island Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Willis Lease Finance in the second quarter valued at approximately $24,747,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Willis Lease Finance by 34.5% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 53,508 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $9,110,000 after acquiring an additional 13,731 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Willis Lease Finance in the first quarter worth approximately $293,000. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in Willis Lease Finance by 39.3% in the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 3,260 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $555,000 after acquiring an additional 920 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $80.00 price target on shares of Willis Lease Finance and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 8th. 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. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Willis Lease Finance to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Willis Lease Finance from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, UBS Group set a $71.00 price target on shares of Willis Lease Finance in a report on Wednesday, August 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Willis Lease Finance currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $75.50.

About Willis Lease Finance

Willis Lease Finance Corporation is an aviation services company that provides commercial aircraft engines, auxiliary power units and related equipment to airlines, aircraft operators and other aviation customers. The company’s leasing activities include short-term and long-term operating leases, as well as engine and equipment financing solutions designed to support fleet operations and maintenance planning.

In addition to leasing, Willis Lease Finance offers engine management, maintenance and asset management services.