Lear (NYSE:LEA) Sets New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) hit a new 52-week high on Friday . The company traded as high as $119.29 and last traded at $118.7650, with a volume of 259472 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $114.60.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on LEA shares. Bank of America cut Lear from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $123.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Lear from $112.00 to $107.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Citigroup raised their price target on Lear from $136.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Lear in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Lear from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lear presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $119.80.

Lear Stock Up 3.3%

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $109.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $104.54. The company has a current ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market cap of $6.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.48, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.30.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 31st. The auto parts company reported $2.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.03. Lear had a net margin of 1.92% and a return on equity of 13.44%. The firm had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.63 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.89 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Lear Corporation will post 12.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 10th were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 10th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.6%. Lear’s payout ratio is currently 37.65%.

Insider Activity at Lear

In other news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.17, for a total value of $590,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 15,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,801,383.48. This represents a 24.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.91% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lear

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in Lear by 1,384.2% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 282 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. WealthCollab LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lear during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in shares of Lear by 62.6% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 309 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lear in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Quent Capital LLC bought a new position in Lear in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. 97.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.