3,700 Shares in Lear Corporation $LEA Acquired by Versor Investments LP

Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 3,700 shares of the auto parts company’s stock, valued at approximately $372,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Lear by 34.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 422 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 107 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lear by 2.0% in the second quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 6,158 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $585,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. increased its stake in Lear by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Waterfront Wealth Inc. now owns 16,834 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,685,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its holdings in Lear by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 15,820 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,592,000 after buying an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its position in Lear by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 24,918 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $2,367,000 after buying an additional 197 shares during the period. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lear Stock Performance

Shares of Lear stock opened at $136.78 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Lear Corporation has a 52 week low of $73.85 and a 52 week high of $142.84. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $120.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $109.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.30.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The auto parts company reported $3.41 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.74. The business had revenue of $5.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.78 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 13.40% and a net margin of 1.88%.The business’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.94 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Lear Corporation will post 12.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 5th. Lear’s payout ratio is presently 37.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on LEA. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Lear from $117.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $121.00 price target on shares of Lear in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Barclays set a $140.00 price objective on Lear in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Argus upgraded shares of Lear to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Evercore lifted their price target on shares of Lear from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Lear presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $135.10.

Key Stories Impacting Lear

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lear’s Board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.77 per share — a direct shareholder return that signals management confidence in near-term cash flow. At the current quote (~$136.78) that works out to roughly a 2.3% annualized yield. Lear Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent fundamentals remain supportive: Lear reported a February quarterly beat (EPS $3.41 vs. $2.67 est.; revenue $5.99B vs. $5.78B), which helps explain the board’s willingness to pay a cash dividend — but shareholders should watch upcoming guidance and free-cash-flow trends for sustainability. (No new guidance was announced in the dividend release.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Other items in the feed (theater listings, opinion pieces about options, unrelated company news) are not material to LEA’s near-term stock performance and unlikely to move the share price.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related 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 transaction of $590,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 15,244 shares in the company, valued at $1,801,383.48. This represents a 24.70% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Lear 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.