Retirement Systems of Alabama Reduces Stock Position in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its stake in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 137,385 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 385 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned approximately 0.24% of Lear worth $19,400,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. RWC Asset Management LLP purchased a new position in Lear in the fourth quarter valued at about $487,000. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp purchased a new position in shares of Lear during the 4th quarter worth approximately $446,000. Arbor Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lear during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,004,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lear during the 4th quarter worth approximately $56,000. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its stake in shares of Lear by 89.3% during the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 7,176 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,013,000 after purchasing an additional 3,385 shares in the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LEA shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Lear from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Lear from $130.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 7th. Benchmark raised their price objective on shares of Lear from $188.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Lear from $170.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Lear from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lear currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $162.44.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lear

In other Lear news, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 10,652 shares of Lear stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.86, for a total value of $1,415,224.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 13,627 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,810,483.22. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 2,750 shares of Lear stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.81, for a total transaction of $387,227.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 17,506 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,465,019.86. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 10,652 shares of Lear stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.86, for a total transaction of $1,415,224.72. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 13,627 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,810,483.22. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Lear Stock Down 8.2 %

Shares of LEA opened at $125.92 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $7.17 billion, a PE ratio of 13.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.34 and a beta of 1.54. The company’s fifty day moving average is $138.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.84. Lear Co. has a fifty-two week low of $117.79 and a fifty-two week high of $157.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.04, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $3.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.12 by ($0.09). The company had revenue of $5.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.69 billion. Lear had a net margin of 2.44% and a return on equity of 14.09%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.81 EPS. Analysts forecast that Lear Co. will post 14.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.82%.

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.