AerSale ascends as sponsor Leonard Green heads for the exits

Shares of aviation products/services firm AerSale ASLE.O up 3.7% premarket to $8.70, about a 10-mth high, as Leonard Green slashes remaining stake

Doral, Florida-based ASLE says it's repurchasing ~6.4 mln shares, ~12% of total outstanding, from the PE firm at negotiated price of $7

Along with the ~$45 mln transaction, co says Jonathan Seiffer stepping down from its board, effective immediately

Strategic repurchase reduces share count and mitigates market volatility as Leonard Green "transitions out of its long-term role as a major shareholder," CEO Nick Finazzo said in statement

Transaction reduces Leonard Green's holdings from 9.57 mln shares to ~3.17 mln, or ~6% stake, per LSEG data

ASLE has ~53.28 mln shares outstanding for $447 mln market cap

Leonard Green first invested in ASLE in 2010, before co went public in Dec 2020 after a SPAC merger

ASLE shares on Fri closed at $8.39, up 33% YTD. Stock lost 50% in 2024

Earlier this month, co reported Q4 rev of ~$95 mln, essentially flat y/y, and net income of $2.7 mln vs net loss of $2.7 mln a yr-ago