Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) have earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nine analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $160.33.

Several analysts have commented on LEA shares. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Lear from $175.00 to $165.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Lear from $177.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Citigroup reduced their price target on Lear from $145.00 to $141.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Lear from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Lear from $146.00 to $142.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday.

Lear Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LEA opened at $127.15 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $138.07 and a 200 day moving average of $135.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $7.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.55. Lear has a 52 week low of $117.79 and a 52 week high of $157.90.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The auto parts company reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.04 by $0.14. Lear had a return on equity of 14.47% and a net margin of 2.28%. The firm had revenue of $5.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.78 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Lear will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio is presently 33.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lear news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 2,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.81, for a total transaction of $387,227.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,465,019.86. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 10,652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.86, for a total transaction of $1,415,224.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,627 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,810,483.22. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 2,750 shares of Lear stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.81, for a total value of $387,227.50. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 17,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,465,019.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lear

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Lear during the fourth quarter worth $79,611,000. Point72 Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Lear by 970.4% during the 4th quarter. Point72 Asset Management L.P. now owns 540,850 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $76,373,000 after acquiring an additional 490,324 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Lear by 236.2% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 577,690 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $77,526,000 after acquiring an additional 405,875 shares during the period. Boston Partners increased its stake in shares of Lear by 66.5% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 981,669 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $138,595,000 after purchasing an additional 391,949 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lyrical Asset Management LP boosted its position in Lear by 55.4% during the fourth quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP now owns 1,067,888 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $150,796,000 after purchasing an additional 380,771 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

About Lear

Lear Corporation designs, develops, engineers, manufactures, assembles, and supplies automotive seating, and electrical distribution systems and related components for automotive original equipment manufacturers in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and South America. Its Seating segment offers seat systems, seat subsystems, keyseat components, seat trim covers, seat mechanisms, seat foams, and headrests, as well as surface materials, such as leather and fabric for automobiles and light trucks, compact cars, pick-up trucks, and sport utility vehicles.