Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) Reaches New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Willis Lease Finance Corporation (NASDAQ:WLFC)’s stock price 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 equities analysts recently weighed in on WLFC shares. Freedom Capital lowered shares of Willis Lease Finance from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Willis Lease Finance from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold”.

Willis Lease Finance Stock Up 3.5%

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.42. The company has a market cap of $460.06 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 2.00, a current ratio of 2.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.25.

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

Willis Lease Finance Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 11th were given a dividend of $0.1333 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 11th. This represents a $0.53 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Willis Lease Finance’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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 that occurred on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.69, for a total transaction of $1,161,578.88. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 450,888 shares in the company, valued at $33,676,824.72. This trade represents a 3.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 53.32% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of WLFC. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Willis Lease Finance in the 4th quarter worth $46,000. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 742.5% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 337 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Willis Lease Finance during the 2nd quarter worth about $54,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in Willis Lease Finance by 197.9% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 694 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $95,000 after purchasing an additional 461 shares during the period. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main bought a new stake in Willis Lease Finance during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $109,000. 93.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.