Lear (NYSE:LEA) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lear (NYSE:LEA) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Barclays boosted their price target on Lear from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Lear from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Lear from $130.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Benchmark boosted their price target on Lear from $188.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Lear from $177.00 to $179.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $160.33.

Lear Price Performance

Shares of LEA opened at $127.15 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $7.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.87, a PEG ratio of 0.31 and a beta of 1.55. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $138.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $135.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.04. Lear has a 12 month low of $117.79 and a 12 month high of $157.90.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The auto parts company reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.04 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $5.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 14.47% and a net margin of 2.28%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.78 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Lear will post 14.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio is 33.59%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 10,652 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.86, for a total transaction of $1,415,224.72. Following the completion of 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 document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 2,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.81, for a total transaction 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 10,652 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,627 shares in the company, valued at $1,810,483.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. WBI Investments LLC acquired a new position in Lear in the 1st quarter worth about $712,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in shares of Lear during the 1st quarter worth about $62,000. FORA Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Lear by 45.3% during the 1st quarter. FORA Capital LLC now owns 12,616 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,828,000 after purchasing an additional 3,932 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lear by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 3,828 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $555,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Lear by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 2,180 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $316,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.