Fulcrum Asset Management LLP Acquires 8,294 Shares of Lear Corporation $LEA

Fulcrum Asset Management LLP acquired a new position in Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 8,294 shares of the auto parts company’s stock, valued at approximately $990,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. CenterBook Partners LP bought a new stake in Lear in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $431,000. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC raised its stake in Lear by 88.1% during the 3rd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 5,890 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $687,000 after buying an additional 2,759 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Lear by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,101 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $130,000 after buying an additional 160 shares during the period. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lear by 5,166.7% during the 3rd quarter. Provenance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 474 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 465 shares during the period. Finally, Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Lear during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on LEA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered Lear from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $175.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Lear from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Monday. UBS Group dropped their target price on Lear from $141.00 to $132.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. Wall Street Zen cut Lear from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, October 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Lear from $137.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $143.25.

Key Headlines Impacting Lear

These are some of the LEA headlines that stood out recently:

• Neutral Sentiment: The headlines concern unrelated topics and organizations; the references to “Lear” are to Shakespeare’s King Lear, not Lear Corporation.
• Neutral Sentiment: As background, Lear’s latest reported quarter showed an adjusted mix: earnings per share exceeded estimates, while revenue came in slightly below expectations. That report is not a new catalyst in the articles supplied.

Lear Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of LEA opened at $108.67 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The business’s 50 day moving average is $120.08 and its 200 day moving average is $127.98. Lear Corporation has a 12-month low of $99.00 and a 12-month high of $150.33. The company has a market capitalization of $5.24 billion, a PE ratio of 9.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.28.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The auto parts company reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.32 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $5.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.81 billion. Lear had a net margin of 2.46% and a return on equity of 14.92%. Lear’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.79 EPS. Research analysts expect that Lear Corporation will post 15.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lear declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, September 24th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the auto parts company to repurchase up to 25.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lear

In other news, CFO Jason Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.75, for a total transaction of $588,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 8,241 shares in the company, valued at $970,377.75. This trade represents a 37.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lear Company Profile

Lear Corporation is a global automotive technology supplier that designs and manufactures products for vehicle seating and electrical systems. Its customers include automakers around the world, and its products are used in a range of vehicle types. The company’s seating business provides complete seating systems and components, including seat structures, mechanisms, foam and trim. Its E-Systems business develops electrical distribution systems, connectivity solutions and electronic components that help manage power and data within vehicles.