15,575 Shares in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER) Bought by Royce & Associates LP

Royce & Associates LP acquired a new stake in AerCap Holdings (NYSE:AER) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 15,575 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,491,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Darsana Capital Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of AerCap during the third quarter worth $94,720,000. TOMS Capital Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of AerCap in the 3rd quarter worth $60,526,000. KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in shares of AerCap by 137.8% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 834,452 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $79,857,000 after acquiring an additional 483,564 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of AerCap by 8.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,862,517 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $460,579,000 after acquiring an additional 370,906 shares during the period. Finally, River Road Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in AerCap by 896.4% during the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 391,506 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,467,000 after purchasing an additional 352,215 shares in the last quarter. 96.42% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AerCap Stock Up 0.3 %

AerCap stock opened at $104.63 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.89, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.67. AerCap Holdings has a fifty-two week low of $81.93 and a fifty-two week high of $107.36. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $98.73 and its two-hundred day moving average is $96.64.

AerCap (NYSE:AER) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The financial services provider reported $3.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.56 by $0.75. The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.97 billion. AerCap had a net margin of 32.38% and a return on equity of 13.98%. Analysts predict that AerCap Holdings will post 11.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

AerCap Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 12th will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is an increase from AerCap’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 12th. AerCap’s payout ratio is currently 9.99%.

AerCap declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, February 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AER shares. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $115.00 price objective (up previously from $113.00) on shares of AerCap in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on AerCap from $108.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group downgraded AerCap to an “underperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $119.00 price target on shares of AerCap in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of AerCap from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AerCap currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $117.43.

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.