Lear (NYSE:LEA) Cut to Hold at TD Cowen

TD Cowen cut shares of Lear (NYSE:LEA) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage currently has $95.00 price objective on the auto parts company’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on LEA. Barclays reduced their target price on Lear from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Lear from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Lear from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Lear from $104.00 to $102.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lear from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lear currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $123.36.

Lear Trading Up 4.3 %

Shares of LEA opened at $98.99 on Friday. Lear has a twelve month low of $86.28 and a twelve month high of $147.11. The stock has a market cap of $5.31 billion, a PE ratio of 11.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $94.97 and its 200-day moving average price is $100.22.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Lear will post 12.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th will be given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 6th. Lear’s payout ratio is presently 34.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lear

In related news, Director Rod Lache purchased 2,178 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $91.80 per share, with a total value of $199,940.40. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,940.40. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Lear by 187.0% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 287 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Lear by 68.2% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in shares of Lear during the third quarter worth about $34,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake 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 last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its holdings in Lear by 51.1% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 491 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

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.