Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) Given Average Rating of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $119.80.

A number of research firms recently commented on LEA. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $104.00 price objective on Lear in a research note on Monday, September 29th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Lear from $109.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Lear from $112.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “equal weight” rating and set a $112.00 price objective (down from $115.00) on shares of Lear in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lear in a report on Wednesday, October 8th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lear news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of Lear stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $118.17, for a total value of $590,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 15,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,801,383.48. The trade was a 24.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lear

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Mirabella Financial Services LLP lifted its position in shares of Lear by 102.9% during the 3rd quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP now owns 19,895 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,998,000 after acquiring an additional 10,091 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Lear by 62.6% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 309 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd bought a new stake in Lear in the third quarter valued at $243,000. Cambria Investment Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Lear during the third quarter valued at about $9,131,000. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Lear by 60.9% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,305 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $131,000 after purchasing an additional 494 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

Lear Stock Performance

Shares of Lear stock opened at $118.84 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $6.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.53, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.33. Lear has a twelve month low of $73.85 and a twelve month high of $119.01. The company’s fifty day moving average is $106.47 and its 200 day moving average is $103.04. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The auto parts company reported $2.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.03. Lear had a return on equity of 13.44% and a net margin of 1.92%.The business had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.63 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.89 EPS. Lear’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Lear will post 12.89 EPS for the current year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 10th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 10th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Lear’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.65%.

About Lear

Lear Corporation (NYSE: LEA) is a global supplier of automotive seating and electrical distribution systems. The company designs, engineers and manufactures complete seat systems, seat components and power solutions for major vehicle manufacturers. Its electrical business delivers modules and components for battery management, infotainment, body and safety electronics, as well as advanced connectivity and electrification solutions.

The seating division develops lightweight, ergonomic seat structures, trim and mechanisms that address comfort, safety and environmental targets.