Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Brokerages

Shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $114.27.

Several brokerages have weighed in on LEA. Barclays downgraded shares of Lear from an "equal weight" rating to a "negative" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. TD Cowen lowered Lear from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $95.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Lear from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Lear from $147.00 to $143.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Lear from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd.

Lear Stock Up 2.5 %

Lear stock traded up $1.97 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $79.48. The stock had a trading volume of 600,138 shares, compared to its average volume of 747,834. The company has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.89, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $90.40 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $95.09. Lear has a one year low of $73.85 and a one year high of $138.69.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $2.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.44. Lear had a return on equity of 14.70% and a net margin of 2.17%. On average, analysts expect that Lear will post 12.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. Lear's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lear news, Director Rod Lache bought 2,178 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $91.80 per share, with a total value of $199,940.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 2,178 shares in the company, valued at $199,940.40. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.91% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lear

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lear by 187.0% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 287 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Lear by 68.2% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Lear by 233.3% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 410 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in shares of Lear by 39.1% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 427 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased its position in Lear by 51.1% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 491 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.04% of the company's stock.

About Lear

Lear Corporation designs, develops, engineers, manufactures, assembles, and supplies automotive seating, and electrical distribution systems and related components for automotive original equipment manufacturers in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and South America. Its Seating segment offers seat systems, seat subsystems, keyseat components, seat trim covers, seat mechanisms, seat foams, and headrests, as well as surface materials, such as leather and fabric for automobiles and light trucks, compact cars, pick-up trucks, and sport utility vehicles.