Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the fourteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $138.00.

LEA has been the topic of several research reports. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Lear from $117.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Lear from $112.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 target price on shares of Lear in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Lear from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lear in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd.

Insider Transactions at Lear

In other news, SVP Alicia J. Davis sold 6,630 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.98, for a total transaction of $881,657.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,326,076.56. The trade was a 39.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Harry Albert Kemp sold 7,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.31, for a total transaction of $954,170.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 17,423 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,374,929.13. This trade represents a 28.66% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 25,264 shares of company stock valued at $3,400,687. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lear

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of LEA. Vest Financial LLC raised its position in Lear by 134.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 25,951 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,611,000 after purchasing an additional 14,904 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lear by 23.6% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,569,341 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $157,891,000 after buying an additional 299,841 shares during the period. Capital Management Corp VA acquired a new stake in shares of Lear in the third quarter valued at about $2,295,000. Meritage Portfolio Management bought a new position in shares of Lear during the third quarter worth about $3,268,000. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Lear in the third quarter worth approximately $1,420,000. Institutional investors own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

Lear Price Performance

Shares of LEA stock opened at $116.39 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $125.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $114.52. The company has a market cap of $5.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.85 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Lear has a twelve month low of $73.85 and a twelve month high of $142.84.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The auto parts company reported $3.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.74. The firm had revenue of $5.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.78 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 13.40% and a net margin of 1.88%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.94 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Lear will post 12.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 5th were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 5th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.79%.

Lear Company Profile

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.