Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) have been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $115.27.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ALV. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on shares of Autoliv from $105.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Autoliv from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $95.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Autoliv in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Autoliv from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $123.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th.

Autoliv Stock Performance

Shares of ALV stock opened at $113.07 on Friday. Autoliv has a 1 year low of $75.49 and a 1 year high of $113.20. The firm has a market cap of $8.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.01, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.36. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $101.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $96.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The auto parts company reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.43. Autoliv had a net margin of 6.63% and a return on equity of 30.47%. The business had revenue of $2.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.58 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Autoliv will post 9.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Autoliv declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, June 4th that allows the company to buyback $2.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the auto parts company to purchase up to 31.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. This is a boost from Autoliv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.22%.

Insider Transactions at Autoliv

In other news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,555 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.32, for a total transaction of $168,437.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 77,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,394,041.76. This trade represents a 1.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Autoliv by 418.3% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,483,726 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $219,686,000 after acquiring an additional 2,004,515 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in Autoliv by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,146,500 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $670,270,000 after acquiring an additional 641,895 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Autoliv in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,761,000. FIL Ltd grew its stake in Autoliv by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,382,265 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $223,433,000 after acquiring an additional 351,876 shares during the period. Finally, Lancaster Investment Management grew its stake in Autoliv by 58.8% in the 1st quarter. Lancaster Investment Management now owns 903,537 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $79,918,000 after acquiring an additional 334,716 shares during the period. 69.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Autoliv

Autoliv, Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and supplies passive safety systems to the automotive industry in Europe, the Americas, China, Japan, and rest of Asia. It offers passive safety systems, including modules and components for frontal-impact airbag protection systems, side-impact airbag protection systems, seatbelts, steering wheels, and inflator technologies.