Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) Shares Down 14.6% – Here’s Why

Willis Lease Finance Co. (NASDAQ:WLFC)’s share price was down 14.6% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $165.01 and last traded at $156.26. Approximately 19,376 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 32% from the average daily volume of 28,489 shares. The stock had previously closed at $183.05.

Willis Lease Finance Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.55 and a beta of 1.11. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $196.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $181.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.84, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Willis Lease Finance (NASDAQ:WLFC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, March 10th. The transportation company reported $2.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.92. The firm had revenue of $152.80 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $145.54 million. Willis Lease Finance had a return on equity of 20.62% and a net margin of 18.56%.

Willis Lease Finance Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.61%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. Willis Lease Finance’s payout ratio is 6.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Austin Chandler Willis sold 3,450 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $204.14, for a total value of $704,283.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 158,034 shares in the company, valued at $32,261,060.76. This trade represents a 2.14 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Willis Lease Finance

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WLFC. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Willis Lease Finance by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 511,472 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $106,154,000 after buying an additional 17,500 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Willis Lease Finance by 15.5% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 142,100 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $29,493,000 after buying an additional 19,078 shares during the last quarter. Four Tree Island Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Willis Lease Finance in the 4th quarter valued at $16,268,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Willis Lease Finance by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 67,021 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $9,975,000 after buying an additional 1,886 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp raised its position in Willis Lease Finance by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 39,926 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $5,941,000 after buying an additional 2,805 shares during the last quarter. 93.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Willis Lease Finance

Willis Lease Finance Corporation operates as a lessor and servicer of commercial aircraft and aircraft engines worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Leasing and Related Operations, and Spare Parts Sales. The Leasing and Related Operations segment engages in acquiring and leasing commercial aircraft, aircraft engines, and other aircraft equipment, as well as the purchase and resale of commercial aircraft engines and other aircraft equipment, and other related businesses.