Vontobel Holding Ltd. Has $1.78 Million Holdings in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. decreased its position in shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) by 4.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,618 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 524 shares during the quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd.’s holdings in Lear were worth $1,782,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in Lear by 3.0% during the third quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 2,998 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $358,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC lifted its stake in Lear by 5.0% in the third quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 1,921 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $258,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Lear by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,152 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $289,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lear by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 1,975 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $265,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Lear by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 2,282 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $306,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Lear

In related news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 2,750 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 17,506 shares in the company, valued at $2,465,019.86. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 10,652 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.86, for a total value of $1,415,224.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 13,627 shares in the company, valued at $1,810,483.22. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 2,750 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 17,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,465,019.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Lear Stock Performance

Shares of Lear stock opened at $132.86 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.57 billion, a PE ratio of 13.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.33 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Lear Co. has a 52 week low of $117.79 and a 52 week high of $157.90. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $138.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.80.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $3.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.12 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $5.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.69 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 2.44%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.81 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Lear Co. will post 14.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.82%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently issued reports on LEA shares. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Lear from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lear from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Benchmark boosted their target price on Lear from $188.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Barclays increased their price target on Lear from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Lear from $195.00 to $179.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $162.44.

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.