Wells Fargo & Company Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Lear (NYSE:LEA) Stock

Lear (NYSE:LEA) had its price target increased by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $137.00 to $138.00 in a report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has an “equal weight” rating on the auto parts company’s stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 7.23% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Lear from $145.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on shares of Lear from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. BNP Paribas Exane lowered shares of Lear from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley set a $130.00 price target on Lear in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $133.00 target price on Lear in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lear currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $145.38.

Lear Stock Performance

LEA traded down $1.94 during trading on Monday, hitting $128.70. The stock had a trading volume of 94,328 shares, compared to its average volume of 600,679. The firm has a market cap of $6.45 billion, a PE ratio of 11.92, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Lear has a 12 month low of $92.10 and a 12 month high of $150.33. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.16.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The auto parts company reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.98 by $0.30. The company had revenue of $6.21 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.15 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 14.18% and a net margin of 2.35%.The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.06 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Lear will post 14.81 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Nicholas Jon Roelli sold 2,336 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 2,339 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $330,687.82. The trade was a 49.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.37, for a total value of $6,768,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 49,789 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,739,936.93. This represents a 50.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 62,026 shares of company stock valued at $8,498,248. Company insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lear

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in LEA. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Lear in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lear in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its position 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 buying an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. WealthCollab LLC acquired a new position in Lear during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in Lear by 62.6% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 309 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

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.