California Public Employees Retirement System Raises Stock Holdings in Lear Corporation $LEA

California Public Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) by 16.0% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 124,317 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after buying an additional 17,117 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in Lear were worth $15,052,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in shares of Lear by 46,707.8% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 951,602 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $109,054,000 after purchasing an additional 949,569 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Lear during the fourth quarter worth approximately $82,016,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Lear during the second quarter worth approximately $39,656,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec bought a new stake in shares of Lear in the third quarter worth $40,984,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Lear by 34.1% in the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 789,745 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $90,505,000 after buying an additional 200,617 shares during the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.37, for a total transaction of $6,768,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 49,789 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,739,936.93. This trade represents a 50.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of Lear stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.50, for a total transaction of $737,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,241 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,953,047.50. This represents a 27.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 62,026 shares of company stock worth $8,498,248. Insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on LEA shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Lear from $133.00 to $137.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $133.00 target price on shares of Lear in a research report on Monday, May 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Lear from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Lear from $177.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Lear from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $144.62.

Key Lear News

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several recent pieces argued that Lear is a strong value stock and may be undervalued versus peers, potentially drawing in bargain-focused investors. Why Lear (LEA) is a Top Value Stock for the Long-Term
• Positive Sentiment: Another Zacks note compared Lear with Modine and suggested investors are evaluating LEA as the better value opportunity, which may bolster relative-strength sentiment. LEA or MOD: Which Is the Better Value Stock Right Now?
• Positive Sentiment: An MSN repost also described Lear as a top value stock for the long term, reinforcing the broader valuation narrative around LEA. Why Lear (LEA) is a top value stock for the long term
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market articles about tech selling off, AI, and education-related topics do not appear directly tied to Lear’s fundamentals or near-term outlook.
• Neutral Sentiment: No major new company-specific earnings, guidance, or deal announcements were included in the latest articles.

Lear Trading Down 0.7%

Lear stock opened at $142.63 on Friday. Lear Corporation has a 52-week low of $91.67 and a 52-week high of $150.33. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.26, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $138.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $130.31.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The auto parts company reported $3.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.36. Lear had a return on equity of 13.69% and a net margin of 2.25%.The business had revenue of $5.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.84 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Lear Corporation will post 14.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. Lear’s payout ratio is presently 30.80%.

About Lear

Lear Corporation (NYSE: LEA) is a global supplier of automotive seating and electrical distribution systems. The company designs, engineers and manufactures complete seat systems, seat components and power solutions for major vehicle manufacturers. Its electrical business delivers modules and components for battery management, infotainment, body and safety electronics, as well as advanced connectivity and electrification solutions.

The seating division develops lightweight, ergonomic seat structures, trim and mechanisms that address comfort, safety and environmental targets.