Royal Bank of Canada Lowers Stock Holdings in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER)

Royal Bank of Canada trimmed its stake in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 240,353 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,196 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada’s holdings in AerCap were worth $23,003,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 59 North Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of AerCap by 17.0% in the 4th quarter. 59 North Capital Management LP now owns 3,704,914 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $354,560,000 after purchasing an additional 538,703 shares during the period. Lyrical Asset Management LP lifted its position in shares of AerCap by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP now owns 3,097,840 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $296,463,000 after purchasing an additional 38,264 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its position in shares of AerCap by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 2,934,185 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $280,802,000 after purchasing an additional 86,548 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd lifted its position in shares of AerCap by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 2,550,350 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $244,068,000 after purchasing an additional 167,830 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of AerCap in the 4th quarter worth approximately $218,517,000. 96.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AerCap Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE:AER opened at $112.60 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89. AerCap Holdings has a 52 week low of $82.21 and a 52 week high of $114.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $21.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.92, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.41. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $102.77 and a 200 day moving average of $99.27.

AerCap (NYSE:AER) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $3.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.69 by $0.99. AerCap had a net margin of 32.38% and a return on equity of 13.98%. The business had revenue of $2.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.29 EPS. AerCap’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AerCap Holdings will post 11.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

AerCap declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 4.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

AerCap Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.96%. AerCap’s payout ratio is 9.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of AerCap from $101.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of AerCap from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of AerCap from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $115.00 target price (up previously from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of AerCap to an “underperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, AerCap currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $119.25.

About AerCap

AerCap Holdings N.V. engages in the lease, financing, sale, and management of commercial flight equipment in China, Hong Kong, Macau, the United States, Ireland, and internationally. The company offers aircraft asset management services, such as remarketing aircraft and engines; collecting rental and maintenance rent payments, monitoring aircraft maintenance, monitoring and enforcing contract compliance, and accepting delivery and redelivery of aircraft and engines; and conducting ongoing lessee financial performance reviews.