Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) Plans $0.77 Quarterly Dividend

Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be given a dividend of 0.77 per share by the auto parts company on Tuesday, June 23rd. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 3rd.

Lear has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.2%per year over the last three years. Lear has a dividend payout ratio of 22.8% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Lear to earn $16.90 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.08 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 18.2%.

Lear Stock Performance

Lear stock opened at $139.09 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.91, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $123.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $120.06. Lear has a 52 week low of $86.14 and a 52 week high of $142.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The auto parts company reported $3.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $5.82 billion during 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.12 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Lear will post 14.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Marianne Vidershain sold 1,590 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total value of $214,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,862 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $251,370. This represents a 46.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Alicia J. Davis sold 6,630 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.98, for a total value of $881,657.40. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,326,076.56. The trade was a 39.93% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 25,264 shares of company stock worth $3,400,687 over the last three months. 1.02% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LEA. M&T Bank Corp boosted its holdings in Lear by 46,707.8% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 951,602 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $109,054,000 after purchasing an additional 949,569 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Lear in the fourth quarter valued at about $82,016,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. purchased a new position in Lear in the second quarter valued at about $39,656,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec purchased a new position in Lear in the third quarter valued at about $40,984,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Lear by 23.6% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,569,341 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $157,891,000 after purchasing an additional 299,841 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.