Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) Short Interest Update

Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) saw a large growth in short interest in April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,740,000 shares, a growth of 9.4% from the March 31st total of 1,590,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 541,300 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.2 days. Currently, 2.1% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ALV shares. Bank of America boosted their target price on Autoliv from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com upgraded Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Autoliv from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Barclays upped their price objective on Autoliv from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered Autoliv from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Autoliv presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $125.90.

Autoliv Stock Performance

Shares of Autoliv stock traded down $0.68 on Tuesday, hitting $120.56. The stock had a trading volume of 287,891 shares, compared to its average volume of 545,173. Autoliv has a twelve month low of $79.66 and a twelve month high of $125.91. The business’s 50 day moving average is $117.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $108.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market cap of $9.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.72.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The auto parts company reported $3.74 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.37 by $0.37. Autoliv had a return on equity of 29.84% and a net margin of 5.10%. The company had revenue of $2.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.75 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Autoliv will post 9.67 EPS for the current year.

Autoliv Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 27th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 12th were given a dividend of $0.68 per share. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 11th. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.43%.

Insider Transactions at Autoliv

In related news, VP Mikael Hagstrom sold 327 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.69, for a total transaction of $35,868.63. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 327 shares in the company, valued at approximately $35,868.63. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, VP Mikael Hagstrom sold 327 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.69, for a total transaction of $35,868.63. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 327 shares in the company, valued at $35,868.63. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Anthony J. Nellis sold 760 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.00, for a total value of $83,600.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 4,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $534,490. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 8,388 shares of company stock valued at $921,757. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Autoliv

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System bought a new position in shares of Autoliv in the 4th quarter valued at $2,314,000. Foundry Partners LLC bought a new position in Autoliv during the 4th quarter worth $15,165,000. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its position in Autoliv by 90.3% during the 3rd quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 8,151 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $786,000 after purchasing an additional 3,867 shares during the last quarter. Versor Investments LP raised its position in Autoliv by 43.5% during the 3rd quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 8,250 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $796,000 after purchasing an additional 2,501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CI Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Autoliv by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. CI Investments Inc. now owns 231,211 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $22,307,000 after acquiring an additional 6,394 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.57% of the company’s stock.

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.