Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Thursday morning.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Cowen assumed coverage on Autoliv in a report on Thursday, March 6th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Barclays raised Autoliv from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $110.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Autoliv from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $109.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on shares of Autoliv from $105.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Daiwa America raised shares of Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $112.64.

Autoliv Trading Down 0.5 %

ALV opened at $86.40 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.71, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.47. Autoliv has a one year low of $75.49 and a one year high of $129.38. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.74 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The auto parts company reported $2.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.43. Autoliv had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 28.62%. The business had revenue of $2.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.58 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Autoliv will post 9.51 EPS for the current year.

Autoliv Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.22%.

Insider Activity at Autoliv

In related news, CFO Fredrik Westin sold 1,803 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.19, for a total value of $178,839.57. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 7,261 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $720,218.59. This trade represents a 19.89 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Magnus Jarlegren sold 1,289 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.83, for a total value of $127,391.87. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,142 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $607,013.86. This represents a 17.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,253 shares of company stock worth $915,534. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Autoliv

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Autoliv by 38.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 276,315 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $25,800,000 after acquiring an additional 76,510 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Autoliv by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 987,375 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $92,221,000 after purchasing an additional 95,888 shares during the period. Lancaster Investment Management grew 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 valued at $53,350,000 after buying an additional 85,732 shares in the last quarter. ABC Arbitrage SA purchased a new position in shares of Autoliv in the fourth quarter worth $394,000. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in Autoliv by 41.5% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 30,216 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $2,821,000 after acquiring an additional 8,859 shares in the last quarter. 69.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Autoliv Company Profile

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.