Lear (NYSE:LEA) Receives “Neutral” Rating from The Goldman Sachs Group

The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed their neutral rating on shares of Lear (NYSE:LEA) in a research report released on Thursday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $84.00 target price on the auto parts company’s stock, down from their prior target price of $117.00.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Lear from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group dropped their target price on Lear from $104.00 to $102.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Lear from $147.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Lear from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Lear from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $117.00.

Lear Price Performance

Shares of LEA opened at $76.19 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $92.40 and its 200-day moving average is $96.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.08 billion, a PE ratio of 8.52, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.34. Lear has a fifty-two week low of $73.85 and a fifty-two week high of $138.69.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.44. Lear had a net margin of 2.17% and a return on equity of 14.70%. Equities analysts forecast that Lear will post 12.89 EPS for the current year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.04%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. Lear’s payout ratio is presently 34.45%.

Insider Transactions at Lear

In other Lear news, Director Rod Lache purchased 2,178 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was bought at an average price of $91.80 per share, with a total value of $199,940.40. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,940.40. This represents a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lear

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in Lear by 187.0% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 287 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lear by 68.2% during the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in shares of Lear by 233.3% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 410 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group increased its position in Lear by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 427 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Lear in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 97.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lear Company Profile

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.