Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Saturday.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on ALV. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $95.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Autoliv in a report on Wednesday. They set a “buy” rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada assumed coverage on shares of Autoliv in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $133.00 price target for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Autoliv currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $117.06.

Autoliv Trading Down 0.5%

ALV opened at $117.74 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $104.38 and its 200-day moving average is $96.72. Autoliv has a 1-year low of $75.49 and a 1-year high of $118.34. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a market cap of $9.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.55, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.37.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The auto parts company reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.43. Autoliv had a net margin of 6.63% and a return on equity of 30.47%. The company had revenue of $2.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.58 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Autoliv will post 9.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 4th that allows the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the auto parts company to reacquire up to 31.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. This is an increase from Autoliv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Autoliv news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,555 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.32, for a total transaction of $168,437.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 77,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,394,041.76. This represents a 1.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Autoliv

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. US Bancorp DE boosted its holdings in Autoliv by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,820 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $358,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Autoliv during the 4th quarter worth $3,815,000. Callan Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Autoliv during the 4th quarter worth $326,000. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its holdings in Autoliv by 74.4% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 314 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lancaster Investment Management boosted its holdings in Autoliv by 17.7% during the 4th quarter. Lancaster Investment Management now owns 568,821 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $53,350,000 after acquiring an additional 85,732 shares during the last quarter. 69.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Autoliv

Autoliv, Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and supplies passive safety systems to the automotive industry in Europe, the Americas, China, Japan, and rest of Asia. It offers passive safety systems, including modules and components for frontal-impact airbag protection systems, side-impact airbag protection systems, seatbelts, steering wheels, and inflator technologies.