Lear (NYSE:LEA) Sets New 12-Month Low - Time to Sell?

Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week low on Monday . The company traded as low as $85.29 and last traded at $87.31, with a volume of 32270 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $87.96.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on LEA shares. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Lear from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Lear from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Barclays decreased 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. Cowen lowered shares of Lear from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Lear from $147.00 to $143.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lear presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $123.36.

Lear Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $4.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.44. 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 stock's 50-day moving average is $94.97 and its 200-day moving average is $97.98.

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Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last announced 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%. Analysts anticipate that Lear Co. 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. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th were issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.74%. Lear's payout ratio is 34.45%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

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

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.