Lear (NYSE:LEA) Upgraded by StockNews.com to Buy

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lear (NYSE:LEA) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Lear from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Lear from $195.00 to $179.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Lear from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Lear from $130.00 to $134.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Finally, Benchmark upped their price objective on shares of Lear from $188.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Lear presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $161.89.

Lear Stock Performance

NYSE LEA opened at $136.81 on Wednesday. Lear has a 1 year low of $117.79 and a 1 year high of $157.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market cap of $7.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.13, a PEG ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $139.19 and a 200-day moving average price of $135.86.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $3.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.12 by ($0.09). The firm had revenue of $5.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.69 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 14.09% and a net margin of 2.44%. The business’s revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.81 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lear will post 14.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 2.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. Lear’s payout ratio is 31.82%.

Insider Transactions at Lear

In other 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 value of $387,227.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,465,019.86. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 10,652 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.86, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 17,506 shares in the company, valued at $2,465,019.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lear

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in Lear by 13.8% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,237,016 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $174,382,000 after purchasing an additional 149,958 shares in the last quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC grew its position in Lear by 7.2% during the fourth quarter. Lakewood Asset Management LLC now owns 9,995 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,411,000 after acquiring an additional 675 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its position in Lear by 36.7% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 273,942 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $36,763,000 after acquiring an additional 73,559 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Lear by 29.0% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 45,916 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $6,162,000 after acquiring an additional 10,324 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CX Institutional grew its position in Lear by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. CX Institutional now owns 25,528 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $3,605,000 after acquiring an additional 2,138 shares during the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.