Lear Corporation $LEA Stock Holdings Decreased by Pzena Investment Management LLC

Pzena Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) by 1.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,540,816 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 97,597 shares during the quarter. Lear makes up about 2.3% of Pzena Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned 0.13% of Lear worth $772,013,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEA. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Lear by 3.8% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,943,480 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $356,380,000 after purchasing an additional 107,678 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in shares of Lear in the 2nd quarter valued at about $65,397,000. Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Lear by 28.8% in the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 176,084 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $21,320,000 after buying an additional 39,422 shares during the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its position in shares of Lear by 14.4% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 151,156 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $18,302,000 after buying an additional 18,990 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor bought a new position in shares of Lear during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $17,423,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lear

In other news, CFO Jason Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.75, for a total value of $588,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 8,241 shares in the company, valued at $970,377.75. This trade represents a 37.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Lear News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lear shares moved above their 50-day moving average after an analyst downgrade, a potentially supportive technical signal. Article: Lear Stock Price Breaks Above Fifty Day Moving Average After Analyst Downgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: CFO Jason Cardew sold 5,000 shares for about $589,000 and retained 8,241 shares. The filing does not give a reason for the sale, so it is not necessarily a signal about the company’s outlook. SEC insider transaction filing
• Negative Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada lowered its expectations for Lear, citing a near-term China overhang. Concern about demand in that market could weigh on the company’s outlook. Article: Lear Faces Near Term China Overhang, RBC Says

Lear Stock Up 1.6%

NYSE:LEA opened at $118.58 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Lear Corporation has a twelve month low of $99.00 and a twelve month high of $150.33. The company has a market cap of $5.71 billion, a PE ratio of 10.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.28. The company’s 50 day moving average is $121.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $128.28.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 30th. The auto parts company reported $3.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.81 billion. Lear had a net margin of 2.46% and a return on equity of 14.92%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.79 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Lear Corporation will post 15.01 EPS for the current year.

Lear declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Thursday, September 24th that allows the company to buy back $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the auto parts company to buy up to 25.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 22nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 2nd. Lear’s payout ratio is presently 26.90%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on LEA. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Lear from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, October 25th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Lear from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Lear from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Lear from $137.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their target price on Lear from $139.00 to $135.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.25.

Lear Company Profile

Lear Corporation is a global automotive technology company that designs and manufactures products used in passenger vehicles and commercial vehicles. Its operations are organized primarily around two areas: seating and e-systems. Lear supplies complete vehicle seating systems, including seats, structures, mechanisms, foam, covers and related components, as well as electrical distribution systems and other technologies that support vehicle power management and connectivity.

The company serves automotive manufacturers and their vehicle programs in major markets across North America, Europe, Asia and other regions.