Air Lease Corporation (NYSE: AL) is an aircraft leasing and aviation asset-management company headquartered in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 2010, it operates in the Rental & Leasing Services industry by acquiring commercial jet aircraft from manufacturers and then leasing those aircraft to airline customers across multiple regions, including Asia ...Air Lease Corporation (NYSE: AL) is an aircraft leasing and aviation asset-management company headquartered in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 2010, it operates in the Rental & Leasing Services industry by acquiring commercial jet aircraft from manufacturers and then leasing those aircraft to airline customers across multiple regions, including Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, North America, Central America, and South America.
Business model and how it makes money: the core product is long-term (and in some cases shorter-term) aircraft leasing. By owning a diversified fleet of aircraft, Air Lease generates revenue through lease payments from airlines. In parallel, the company monetizes and optimizes its aircraft portfolio through (1) sales of aircraft to third parties such as other leasing companies, financial services firms, airlines, and investors, and (2) fleet management services provided to owners and investors of aircraft portfolios.
Scale and portfolio mix: as of December 31, 2025, Air Lease reported ownership of 490 aircraft, management of 45 aircraft, and 218 aircraft on order. This order book indicates ongoing capital deployment and provides future fleet growth, subject to delivery schedules, financing conditions, and customer demand.
Products and services: beyond “wet/asset” leasing of commercial jets, the company’s services extend into operational support and management of third-party aircraft portfolios. This creates additional fee-based activity and allows it to participate in the lifecycle of aviation assets beyond simply placing them on lease.
Cost structure and capital intensity (practical view): aircraft leasing is inherently capital-intensive because the company must fund aircraft purchases and related operating costs (e.g., maintenance reserves and fleet-related expenses) while also managing aircraft utilization and residual value risk. The lease economics depend on lease duration, aircraft type, market demand for seats/capacity, credit quality of airline counterparties, and timing of aircraft remarketing or disposition. Financial metrics in the provided dataset also reflect the capital-heavy nature of the business.
Key people and governance: the company’s CEO is John L. Plueger. Leadership in this sector typically focuses on capital allocation (new aircraft acquisitions, refinancing, and hedging strategies), customer relationships with airlines, and portfolio risk management (lease expirations, re-leasing capability, and residual value considerations).
Financial/market context: Air Lease trades on the NYSE and reports financial performance typical of the aircraft leasing industry, where earnings can be influenced by depreciation/accounting treatment, interest expense, aircraft utilization, and lease renewals as well as broader credit and aviation-cycle conditions. The company also pays a dividend, with the dataset indicating a last dividend value of $0.88.
Wider strategic direction: the company’s ongoing aircraft orders and fleet management activities suggest a strategy centered on building and rotating a globally diversified fleet while maintaining liquidity and financing flexibility to support aircraft deliveries and opportunistic aircraft sales. Its public-market footprint and scale aim to provide resilient access to aviation demand even as fleet composition and market conditions change.
YoYYoY means Year-over-Year. It compares the latest annual value with the previous annual value to show long-term trend strength.
QoQQoQ means Quarter-over-Quarter. It compares the latest quarter with the immediately previous quarter to show short-term momentum changes.
RevenueThe total money that came through the front door from selling things, before paying a single bill. Think of it as the grand total of every credit card swipe from customers. (YoY compares this year to last year's performance, while QoQ compares the current three months to the previous three).
$3.0B
+10.3%
+1115.6%
Net IncomeThe absolute bottom line. If the company paid every single supplier, employee, banker, and tax collector, this is the actual money left in their pocket at the end of the day.
$1.1B
+154.5%
+225.8%
Gross MarginThe basic markup. If they sell a $100 pair of sneakers, this percentage tells you how much of that price tag is profit right after paying for the rubber and shoelaces, but before paying for things like store rent or TV commercials.
+59.4%
+101.1%
-100.0%
Operating MarginThe 'day job' efficiency score. Out of every dollar a customer spends, this shows how many cents the company keeps after making the product AND paying for all the everyday corporate overhead (like salaries, marketing, and keeping the lights on).
+50.5%
+134.9%
—
Net MarginThe final take-home percentage. When you strip away every conceivable cost, tax, and interest payment, this is the exact number of cents the company truly gets to keep from every dollar in sales.
+36.1%
+130.7%
-73.2%
Free Cash FlowThe holy grail of corporate cash. It's the spendable, physical money left over after the business pays for its daily operations AND buys the big, expensive upgrades (like new factories or servers) it needs to survive. This is the 'free' money they can use to pay dividends or buy back stock.
$-1.7B
+42.5%
-142.6%
FCF MarginThe ultimate cash conversion rate. It shows how good the company is at turning regular sales directly into cold, hard, spendable cash. A high percentage means the business is an absolute cash-printing machine.
-55.0%
+47.8%
+80.0%
Debt / EquityThe financial risk gauge. It compares how much of the company's empire was built using borrowed money (loans) versus the owners' own money (shareholders). A high number means they are heavily leveraged and playing a riskier game; a low number means they are playing it safe.
232.9%
-13.2%
—
Current RatioThe 12-month survival check. It simply compares the cash they have right now (plus things they can quickly turn into cash) against the immediate bills they absolutely must pay this year. A score above 1 means they have enough in the wallet to cover the upcoming bills without panicking.
0.93x
+176.2%
—
Total AssetsThe absolute size of the company's empire. It bundles together absolutely everything of value they own—from the cash in the register and the inventory in the warehouse, to the software patents in the vault and the factories on the ground.
