Griffin Asset Management Inc. Invests $222,000 in Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV)

Griffin Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 1,841 shares of the auto parts company’s stock, valued at approximately $222,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 6.7% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,136,224 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $206,103,000 after purchasing an additional 133,746 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Autoliv by 41.0% during the 4th quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 958,304 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $105,596,000 after buying an additional 278,800 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Autoliv during the 4th quarter worth about $91,065,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Autoliv by 169.8% in the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 759,239 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $83,661,000 after acquiring an additional 477,800 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 504,042 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $55,540,000 after acquiring an additional 8,198 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.57% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $126.75, for a total value of $240,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 77,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,822,237.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Autoliv Price Performance

ALV stock opened at $106.99 on Friday. Autoliv, Inc. has a one year low of $83.69 and a one year high of $129.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $119.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $114.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.71 billion, a PE ratio of 16.69, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.10, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The auto parts company reported $1.58 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.18. Autoliv had a net margin of 5.10% and a return on equity of 29.84%. The business had revenue of $2.62 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.57 billion. On average, analysts forecast that Autoliv, Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Autoliv Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 22nd. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.54%. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio is 42.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ALV has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Autoliv in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Autoliv from $133.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Barclays raised their target price on Autoliv from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. StockNews.com cut shares of Autoliv from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $128.00 to $122.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $128.90.

About Autoliv

Autoliv, Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and supplies passive safety systems to the automotive industry in Europe, the Americas, China, Japan, and rest of Asia. It offers passive safety systems, including modules and components for frontal-impact airbag protection systems, side-impact airbag protection systems, seatbelts, steering wheels, and inflator technologies.