US Bancorp DE Decreases Stock Holdings in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)

US Bancorp DE decreased its stake in shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) by 14.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,376 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 390 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE’s holdings in Lear were worth $225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted 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. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in shares of Lear in the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Lear by 68.2% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of Lear by 233.3% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 410 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Lear during the third quarter worth $50,000. Institutional investors own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

Lear Stock Performance

LEA opened at $94.56 on Friday. Lear Co. has a 12-month low of $86.28 and a 12-month high of $147.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.07 billion, a PE ratio of 10.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $95.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $99.74.

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

Lear Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.45%.

Insider Activity at Lear

In other news, Director Rod Lache bought 2,178 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $91.80 per share, for a total transaction of $199,940.40. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $199,940.40. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on LEA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Lear from $147.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of Lear from $104.00 to $102.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Lear from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price 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, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Lear from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $123.36.

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.