Lear (NYSE:LEA) Given New $159.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) had its price objective boosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $153.00 to $159.00 in a research note published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the auto parts company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup increased their price target on Lear from $177.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Lear in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Lear from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. TD Cowen upgraded shares of Lear from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $138.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Lear from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lear currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $144.23.

Lear Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of Lear stock traded up $1.41 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $136.17. The company had a trading volume of 358,252 shares, compared to its average volume of 588,192. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The company’s 50-day moving average is $138.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $128.69. The company has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.25. Lear has a twelve month low of $91.67 and a twelve month high of $150.33.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The auto parts company reported $3.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $5.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.84 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 13.69% and a net margin of 2.25%.The firm’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.12 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Lear will post 14.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 3rd. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.80%.

Insider Activity

In other Lear news, SVP Nicholas Jon Roelli sold 2,336 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.38, for a total value of $330,263.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 2,339 shares in the company, valued at approximately $330,687.82. The trade was a 49.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.50, for a total transaction of $737,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 13,241 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,953,047.50. The trade was a 27.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 62,026 shares of company stock worth $8,498,248. Corporate insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Lear in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lear during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Lear by 942.3% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 271 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. WealthCollab LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lear in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Lear by 62.6% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 309 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lear News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised Lear’s price target to $159 from $153 and kept an overweight rating, implying more upside than previously expected. Benzinga report on JPMorgan price target increase
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays also increased its price target to $155 from $150, while maintaining an equal weight view, adding to the bullish analyst momentum around Lear. American Banking News report on Barclays price target increase
• Neutral Sentiment: A separate article about the stage production Lear is unrelated to Lear Corporation’s business and is unlikely to affect the stock. The Guardian article

About Lear

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.