Rangeley Capital LLC Purchases New Stake in Willis Lease Finance Co. (NASDAQ:WLFC)

Rangeley Capital LLC bought a new position in Willis Lease Finance Co. (NASDAQ:WLFC) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,000 shares of the transportation company’s stock, valued at approximately $208,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 221.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 3,738 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $556,000 after buying an additional 2,576 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Willis Lease Finance during the 3rd quarter worth $531,000. Franklin Resources Inc. purchased a new position in Willis Lease Finance in the 3rd quarter worth about $283,000. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Willis Lease Finance by 7.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 39,926 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $5,941,000 after acquiring an additional 2,805 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Willis Lease Finance by 173.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 22,990 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,421,000 after purchasing an additional 14,590 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 93.70% of the company’s stock.

Willis Lease Finance Stock Performance

WLFC stock opened at $160.57 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $1.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.38 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.84, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.16. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $185.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $188.11. Willis Lease Finance Co. has a 52 week low of $48.10 and a 52 week high of $235.43.

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

Willis Lease Finance Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 12th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 12th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. Willis Lease Finance’s payout ratio is 6.50%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Scott B. Flaherty sold 1,539 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.90, for a total transaction of $263,015.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 69,296 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,842,686.40. This represents a 2.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Austin Chandler Willis sold 3,450 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.14, for a total value of $704,283.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 158,034 shares in the company, valued at approximately $32,261,060.76. This represents a 2.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,015 shares of company stock valued at $1,894,595. Insiders own 57.02% of the company’s stock.

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.