Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) Receives $143.08 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the fifteen analysts that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $143.0769.

LEA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Lear from $152.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Lear in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Lear in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Lear from $126.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Lear from $177.00 to $179.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th.

Insider Activity at Lear

In other Lear news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of Lear stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.50, for a total value of $737,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,241 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,953,047.50. The trade was a 27.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Nicholas Jon Roelli sold 2,336 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.38, for a total transaction of $330,263.68. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 2,339 shares in the company, valued at $330,687.82. This represents a 49.97% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 12,026 shares of company stock worth $1,729,748 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lear

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lear by 23.6% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,569,341 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $157,891,000 after acquiring an additional 299,841 shares during the last quarter. Oldfield Partners LLP grew its position in Lear by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Oldfield Partners LLP now owns 644,286 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $73,835,000 after purchasing an additional 33,313 shares in the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new stake in Lear in the 4th quarter worth about $22,539,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd bought a new stake in Lear in the 3rd quarter worth about $1,420,000. Finally, Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its position in Lear by 33.1% in the 4th quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 17,264 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,978,000 after purchasing an additional 4,293 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

Lear Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LEA opened at $140.00 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $135.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $126.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.05. Lear has a 1 year low of $89.29 and a 1 year high of $150.33.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The auto parts company reported $3.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.36. Lear had a net margin of 2.25% and a return on equity of 13.69%. The business had revenue of $5.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.84 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.12 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Lear will post 14.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Lear’s payout ratio is presently 30.80%.

Lear Company 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.