Lear (NYSE:LEA) Sets New 52-Week Low - Here's Why

Shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $91.14 and last traded at $91.62, with a volume of 16600 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $92.81.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on LEA. Barclays lowered shares of Lear from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $140.00 to $120.00 in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Lear from $162.00 to $160.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 21st. TD Cowen cut their price objective on Lear from $142.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Lear from $144.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Lear from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $134.18.

Lear Trading Down 2.0 %

The company has a market capitalization of $4.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.56, a PEG ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business's 50-day moving average price is $96.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $106.27.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The auto parts company reported $2.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.57 by $0.32. The company had revenue of $5.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.52 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 14.68% and a net margin of 2.33%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.87 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that Lear Co. will post 12.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th were issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 11th. Lear's dividend payout ratio is 32.39%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lear

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in Lear during the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lear by 70.5% during the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 266 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Lear by 240.4% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 303 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new position in Lear in the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Lear by 71.6% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 333 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. 97.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lear Company Profile

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.