Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 106,414 Shares of Lear Corporation $LEA

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its stake in Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 6,660,681 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 106,414 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 0.13% of Lear worth $670,131,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its stake in shares of Lear by 1.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 118,695 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $11,942,000 after buying an additional 1,516 shares during the period. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Lear by 69.3% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 3,737 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $376,000 after acquiring an additional 1,530 shares during the last quarter. GenTrust LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lear in the third quarter valued at about $934,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lear during the third quarter valued at about $106,000. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lear by 5.1% during the third quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 9,583 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $964,000 after purchasing an additional 469 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

Lear News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 results beat expectations — Lear reported $3.41 EPS vs. $2.67 est. and revenue above consensus, reinforcing the company’s underlying fundamentals and supporting earnings momentum. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend & payout profile — Lear announced a $0.77 quarterly dividend (annualized $3.08, ~2.3% yield) with ex-dividend on March 5; steady payout and a sub-40% DPR can support investor demand. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support — Multiple firms have raised price targets or reiterated positive views (Citigroup, Argus, TD Cowen among others), leaving consensus near a modest premium to current levels and providing analyst-driven support. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum recognition — Zacks highlighted LEA as a strong momentum stock, which can attract momentum-focused flows. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Large institutional positions — Recent filings show material increases by institutions (M&T, Schroders, Norges Bank, others). High institutional ownership can stabilize volume but also concentrate risk. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Clustered insider selling — CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 10,000 shares on Feb. 19 at ~$134.51 (≈$1.345M), reducing his stake by ~30.5%; CFO sales typically attract scrutiny. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: SVP sales — Harry Albert Kemp sold 7,000 shares at ~$136.31 on Feb. 19 (≈$954k), cutting his holding by ~28.7%. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: More insider selling — SVP Alicia J. Davis sold 6,630 shares at ~$132.98 on Feb. 19 (≈$882k), a ~39.9% reduction; multiple senior-exec sales in close timing raise short-term sentiment risk. Read More.

Lear Price Performance

Shares of LEA opened at $132.86 on Tuesday. Lear Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $73.85 and a fifty-two week high of $142.84. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $124.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $111.90. The stock has a market cap of $6.74 billion, a PE ratio of 16.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The auto parts company reported $3.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.74. Lear had a return on equity of 13.40% and a net margin of 1.88%.The company had revenue of $5.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.78 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.94 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Lear Corporation will post 12.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.79%.

Insider Transactions at Lear

In related news, SVP Alicia J. Davis sold 6,630 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.98, for a total value of $881,657.40. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 9,972 shares in the company, valued at $1,326,076.56. The trade was a 39.93% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Harry Albert Kemp sold 7,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.31, for a total transaction of $954,170.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 17,423 shares in the company, valued at $2,374,929.13. This trade represents a 28.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 28,630 shares of company stock valued at $3,771,777 in the last quarter. 0.91% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LEA. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Lear from $112.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays set a $140.00 target price on shares of Lear in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Lear from $117.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lear in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Evercore upped their target price on Lear from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Lear currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.27.

Lear Profile

Lear Corporation (NYSE: LEA) is a global supplier of automotive seating and electrical distribution systems. The company designs, engineers and manufactures complete seat systems, seat components and power solutions for major vehicle manufacturers. Its electrical business delivers modules and components for battery management, infotainment, body and safety electronics, as well as advanced connectivity and electrification solutions.

The seating division develops lightweight, ergonomic seat structures, trim and mechanisms that address comfort, safety and environmental targets.