Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Cuts Position in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its position in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA - Free Report) by 28.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 144,673 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 58,675 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans owned about 0.27% of Lear worth $13,700,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LEA. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lear by 187.0% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 287 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC raised its position in Lear by 68.2% in the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Lear in the 3rd quarter worth about $34,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings 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 valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Lear in the third quarter worth approximately $50,000. 97.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LEA has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Lear from $104.00 to $102.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Lear from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Lear from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 10th. TD Cowen downgraded Lear from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $95.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Lear from $147.00 to $143.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $123.36.

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Insider Transactions at Lear

In related news, Director Rod Lache bought 2,178 shares of the 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 acquisition, 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 purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Lear Stock Performance

Lear stock traded down $0.76 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $95.84. The stock had a trading volume of 621,242 shares, compared to its average volume of 697,947. Lear Co. has a 52-week low of $86.28 and a 52-week high of $146.19. The company has a market capitalization of $5.14 billion, a PE ratio of 10.72, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.44. The firm's fifty day moving average is $95.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.58. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

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

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be given a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. Lear's payout ratio is 34.45%.

Lear 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.