AAR (NYSE:AIR) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

AAR Corp. (NYSE:AIR) shares gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $61.75, but opened at $66.00. AAR shares last traded at $68.28, with a volume of 121,218 shares traded.

The aerospace company reported $0.90 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.07. AAR had a net margin of 2.67% and a return on equity of 10.22%. The business had revenue of $686.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $654.47 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.81 earnings per share. AAR’s revenue was up 25.8% on a year-over-year basis.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on AIR shares. StockNews.com downgraded AAR from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of AAR in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $83.00 price objective on shares of AAR in a report on Friday, October 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AAR presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.00.

Institutional Trading of AAR

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in AAR by 9.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 40,737 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $2,663,000 after buying an additional 3,612 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in AAR by 18.5% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 500,200 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $32,693,000 after acquiring an additional 77,974 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of AAR by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 969,741 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $59,591,000 after acquiring an additional 114,460 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of AAR by 3.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 796,962 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $52,101,000 after purchasing an additional 27,747 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its position in shares of AAR by 269.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 66,223 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $4,328,000 after purchasing an additional 48,298 shares in the last quarter. 90.74% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

AAR Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 3.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81. The business’s 50-day moving average is $64.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $65.30. The company has a market capitalization of $2.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.84 and a beta of 1.61.

About AAR

AAR Corp. provides products and services to commercial aviation, government, and defense markets worldwide. The Parts Supply segment leases and sells aircraft components and replacement parts. The Repair & Engineering segment provides airframe maintenance services, such as airframe inspection, painting, line maintenance, airframe modification, structural repair, avionics service and installation, exterior and interior refurbishment, and engineering and support services; component repair services comprising maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) services, engine and airframe accessories, and interior refurbishment; and landing gear overhaul services, including repair services on wheels and brakes.