Lear Corporation $LEA Shares Acquired by Systematic Financial Management LP

Systematic Financial Management LP lifted its position in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) by 19.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,044 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,025 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP’s holdings in Lear were worth $2,870,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in LEA. M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in shares of Lear by 46,707.8% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 951,602 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $109,054,000 after purchasing an additional 949,569 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Lear during the second quarter worth $39,656,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec acquired a new position in shares of Lear during the third quarter worth $40,984,000. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lear by 23.6% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,569,341 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $157,891,000 after purchasing an additional 299,841 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Lear during the fourth quarter worth $22,539,000. 97.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lear Trading Down 0.1%

LEA opened at $139.73 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.00 billion, a PE ratio of 13.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $125.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $121.31. 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 Corporation has a 12-month low of $86.14 and a 12-month high of $142.84.

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

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. 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%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lear news, VP Marianne Vidershain sold 1,590 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.00, for a total transaction of $214,650.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 1,862 shares in the company, valued at $251,370. The trade was a 46.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 1.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Key Lear News

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks highlighted Lear (LEA) as a top-ranked growth stock, which may draw in growth-oriented investors and support the shares. Lear (LEA) is a Top-Ranked Growth Stock: Should You Buy?
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent articles about saunas, red light therapy, crypto regulation, and other unrelated topics do not appear to affect Lear’s shares. The health benefits of saunas: backed by research and experts
• Neutral Sentiment: Lear’s latest reported results showed EPS ahead of expectations and revenue growth, helping reinforce the stock’s positive momentum, though this was from an earlier earnings release rather than a new catalyst today.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Lear in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Lear from $152.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Lear from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Lear from $145.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Lear from $126.00 to $133.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $140.54.

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.