Lear (NYSE:LEA) Reaches New 12-Month Low – Here’s What Happened

Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)’s share price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $91.70 and last traded at $91.73, with a volume of 16639 shares. The stock had previously closed at $92.77.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LEA. StockNews.com upgraded Lear from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Lear from $162.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Lear from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Lear from $145.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Lear from $142.00 to $125.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $134.18.

Lear Stock Down 0.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $97.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.02. The firm has a market cap of $5.02 billion, a PE ratio of 9.72, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.45.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The auto parts company reported $2.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.57 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $5.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.52 billion. Lear had a net margin of 2.33% and a return on equity of 14.68%. Lear’s revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.87 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Lear Co. will post 12.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th were issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 11th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio is presently 32.39%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lear

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new position in Lear during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lear by 70.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 266 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in shares of Lear in the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Lear by 240.4% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 303 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its holdings in Lear by 71.6% during the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 333 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Lear

Lear Corporation designs, develops, engineers, manufactures, assembles, and supplies automotive seating, and electrical distribution systems and related components for automotive original equipment manufacturers in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and South America. Its Seating segment offers seat systems, seat subsystems, keyseat components, seat trim covers, seat mechanisms, seat foams, and headrests, as well as surface materials, such as leather and fabric for automobiles and light trucks, compact cars, pick-up trucks, and sport utility vehicles.