Lear (NYSE:LEA) Hits New 1-Year Low – Here’s What Happened

Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)’s share price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $100.86 and last traded at $100.96, with a volume of 410440 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $104.96.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Barclays dropped their price target on Lear from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group dropped their price target on Lear from $136.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Lear in a research report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Lear from $162.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Lear from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $145.09.

Lear Stock Down 5.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.34. The company has a market cap of $5.66 billion, a PE ratio of 11.45, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.44. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $109.57 and a 200 day simple moving average of $118.20.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The auto parts company reported $3.60 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.34 by $0.26. The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.02 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 14.75% and a net margin of 2.30%. The firm’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.33 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Lear Co. will post 12.49 EPS for the current year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th were paid a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 4th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio is currently 33.59%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lear

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Riverview Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Lear in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lear by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,828 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $989,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lear in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $5,847,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lear by 14.9% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,101 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $304,000 after acquiring an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State of Michigan Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of Lear by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 18,393 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $2,665,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during 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.