Aircastle Ltd.: Expect Growth and Increasing Dividend

Aircastle Ltd. (AYR)
caught my eye in March when the company slashed its quarterly dividend
from 70¢ per share to 25¢. This was after 6 straight dividend increases
from 16¢ to the earlier mentioned 70¢. The stock had peaked at about
$40 last summer and had been declining steadily, with the downward
slope steepening just before the dividend slash announcement.<!---->

I
think the early stock price erosion was tied to the overall credit
crisis and its effect on a company that requires a lot of debt. The
dividend cut was accompanied by the announcement that the company wanted to
preserve cash in difficult times. Internet scuttlebutt hinted at
difficulty with funding sources.