AAR Corp. (NYSE:AIR) Shares Purchased by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in shares of AAR Corp. (NYSE:AIR) by 13.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 969,741 shares of the aerospace company’s stock after buying an additional 114,460 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in AAR were worth $59,591,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of AAR by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,588,893 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $115,513,000 after acquiring an additional 48,630 shares in the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. acquired a new position in AAR in the 2nd quarter worth about $77,754,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in AAR by 1,956.5% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 909,953 shares of the aerospace company’s stock worth $66,154,000 after purchasing an additional 865,705 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in 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 period. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its holdings in AAR by 20.5% in the third quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 790,267 shares of the aerospace company’s stock valued at $51,652,000 after purchasing an additional 134,215 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.74% of the company’s stock.

AAR Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of AIR stock opened at $63.91 on Tuesday. AAR Corp. has a fifty-two week low of $54.71 and a fifty-two week high of $76.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 1.45 and a current ratio of 3.06. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $64.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.12 and a beta of 1.59.

AAR (NYSE:AIR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, September 23rd. The aerospace company reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.03. AAR had a net margin of 2.67% and a return on equity of 10.22%. The firm had revenue of $661.70 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $645.60 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that AAR Corp. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AIR has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded AAR from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of AAR in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $83.00 price target on shares of AAR in a research report on Friday, October 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.00.

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.