Lear (NYSE:LEA) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lear (NYSE:LEA) from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a research report released on Friday morning.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on LEA. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Lear from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Lear from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Lear from $133.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “equal weight” rating and set a $112.00 price target (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Lear in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Lear from $136.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.20.

Lear Price Performance

Lear stock opened at $119.85 on Friday. Lear has a 52 week low of $73.85 and a 52 week high of $127.36. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $114.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $107.53. The stock has a market cap of $6.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 31st. The auto parts company reported $2.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.63 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 13.44% and a net margin of 1.92%.Lear’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.89 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Lear will post 12.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 10th were given a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 10th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio is 37.65%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lear news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of Lear stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.17, for a total transaction of $590,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 15,244 shares in the company, valued at $1,801,383.48. The trade was a 24.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.91% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lear

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LEA. IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in Lear by 1,384.2% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 282 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares in the last quarter. WealthCollab LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lear during the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Lear by 62.6% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 309 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in Lear in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Lear in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. 97.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

More Lear News

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks argues Lear (LEA) is positioned to beat upcoming earnings again based on its strong earnings-surprise history and the presence of the “two key ingredients” Zacks uses to forecast beats — this is a direct, potentially bullish signal for LEA ahead of results. Why Lear (LEA) Could Beat Earnings Estimates Again
• Neutral Sentiment: Long-dated investment-grade corporate bond ETF coverage (VCLT) — macro fixed-income flows can affect broader market risk appetite, but this ETF piece is not specific to Lear’s business or fundamentals. VCLT: Learn About This Long Dated Investment Grade Corporate Bond ETF
• Neutral Sentiment: NIIT USA to inject up to $300k into Brazilian subsidiary — small corporate funding news for an education company; not material to Lear. NIIT USA to Inject Up To USD 300,000 Into Brazil Subsidiary For Growth And Working Capital
• Neutral Sentiment: Kevin O’Leary calls many altcoins “poo-poo coins” while favoring bitcoin/ether — influential investor commentary can move risk sentiment in pockets of the market, but it’s peripheral to LEA’s auto-supply fundamentals. Kevin O’Leary — aka ‘Mr. Wonderful’ from ‘Shark Tank’ — explains why he calls altcoins ‘poo-poo coins’
• Neutral Sentiment: Hevi launches AI-powered contract-training module for heavy industries — product/tech news for training software; unlikely to impact Lear’s auto seating/E-systems revenue. Hevi Launches AI-Powered Contract Training
• Neutral Sentiment: Michelle Obama clarification on “go high” motto — cultural/political commentary with no material relevance to Lear. Michelle Obama clarifies her famous ‘go high’ motto
• Neutral Sentiment: Kevin O’Leary on bitcoin regulation and electricity value — market commentary on crypto/regulation that doesn’t directly affect auto supplier fundamentals. Kevin O’Leary Says Until Bitcoin Hits This Level And Gets ‘Fully Regulated,’ Owning Electricity Will Be More ‘Valuable’ Than BTC Itself
• Neutral Sentiment: Ryanair CEO credits public feud with Elon Musk for a short-term bookings bump — airline-specific PR impact; unrelated to Lear. Ryanair Boss Thanks Elon Musk for Boosting Bookings with Public Feud
• Neutral Sentiment: Kevin O’Leary bullish on Canadian dollar/energy after Trump’s Davos comments — macro/currency trade idea; only indirectly relevant to multinational suppliers like Lear. Kevin O’Leary Sees US-Canada Negotiation After Trump’s Davos Speech

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.