Lyrical Asset Management LP Grows Stock Position in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)

Lyrical Asset Management LP boosted its stake in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA - Free Report) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,056,694 shares of the auto parts company's stock after purchasing an additional 29,370 shares during the period. Lear makes up approximately 1.5% of Lyrical Asset Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 29th largest position. Lyrical Asset Management LP owned about 1.94% of Lear worth $100,069,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in LEA. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lear by 187.0% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 287 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC raised its position in Lear by 68.2% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Lear by 233.3% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 410 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares during 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 valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of Lear in the 3rd quarter worth $50,000. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Lear Price Performance

NYSE LEA traded up $0.16 on Friday, reaching $76.49. The company had a trading volume of 225,537 shares, compared to its average volume of 739,214. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $92.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $96.45. Lear Co. has a 12 month low of $73.85 and a 12 month high of $138.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.10 billion, a PE ratio of 8.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.44. Lear had a return on equity of 14.70% and a net margin of 2.17%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Lear Co. will post 12.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.03%. Lear's dividend payout ratio is currently 34.45%.

Insider Activity at Lear

In other Lear news, Director Rod Lache bought 2,178 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $91.80 per share, for a total transaction of $199,940.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,178 shares of the company's stock, valued at $199,940.40. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.79% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LEA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays lowered their target price on Lear from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Lear from $147.00 to $143.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lear from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of Lear from $102.00 to $83.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Cowen cut shares of Lear from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $117.00.

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.