Victory Capital Management Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Lear Corporation $LEA

Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) by 25.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 142,433 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after buying an additional 28,883 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.27% of Lear worth $14,330,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its position in Lear by 75.6% during the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,801,284 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $171,086,000 after acquiring an additional 775,476 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Lear by 23.6% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,569,341 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $157,891,000 after purchasing an additional 299,841 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management increased its stake in shares of Lear by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 680,931 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $68,508,000 after purchasing an additional 31,203 shares in the last quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP increased its stake in shares of Lear by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 570,048 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $57,353,000 after purchasing an additional 20,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Lear during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $48,468,000. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on LEA. Barclays set a $140.00 target price on Lear in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Argus upgraded Lear to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. Benchmark initiated coverage on Lear in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $170.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America began coverage on Lear in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Lear from $112.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $138.27.

Lear Price Performance

LEA stock opened at $119.30 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. Lear Corporation has a 52-week low of $73.85 and a 52-week high of $142.84. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $126.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.78.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The auto parts company reported $3.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.74. Lear had a return on equity of 13.40% and a net margin of 1.88%.The firm had revenue of $5.99 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.78 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.94 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Lear Corporation will post 12.89 EPS for the current year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.79%.

More Lear News

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Deepening chip partnerships (MediaTek learning from Nvidia) could accelerate automotive AI/ADAS compute demand and broader vehicle electrification — a longer-term tailwind for Lear’s electrical distribution and seating electronics businesses. Rick Tsai Shares Advice; MediaTek Learning From Nvidia
• Neutral Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square NYSE listing is a major capital-markets event that could shift institutional cash flows and market sentiment but has no direct link to Lear. Watch for any market-wide volatility. Pershing Square Goes Public: Bill Ackman’s NYSE Listing Explained
• Neutral Sentiment: Docebo’s conference note (AI platform focus and $60M buyback) highlights ongoing tech-sector buybacks and AI optimism — an industry signal but not company-specific to Lear. Such cross-sector sentiment can indirectly influence cyclical stocks. Docebo Conference: CFO Touts AI Learning Platform
• Neutral Sentiment: Media and investor commentary (Kevin O’Leary on execution vs. work location) touches on talent and execution themes that could influence corporate hiring/operations broadly, but it’s only an indirect factor for auto suppliers like Lear. Shark Tank’s Kevin O’Leary on Execution and Work
• Neutral Sentiment: Lear Capital being named “Best Overall Gold IRA Company” is unrelated to Lear Corporation (LEA) but could cause ticker confusion among retail investors; it’s not operational news for LEA. Lear Capital Named Best Overall Gold IRA Company
• Neutral Sentiment: Several small-cap education/tech corporate filings and director share-move notices (OpenLearning, 3P Learning, etc.) are sector-specific micro news with no clear impact on Lear. OpenLearning Director Adam Brimo Lifts Indirect Shareholding
• Negative Sentiment: US Treasury warning about rising crypto ATM scams is a risk-off headline for some market segments; if it fuels broader risk aversion it could pressure cyclical names, including auto suppliers like Lear in the short term. Treasury Department Flags Cryptocurrency ATMs as Rising Scam Vector

Insider Activity at Lear

In other Lear news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 10,000 shares of Lear stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $134.51, for a total value of $1,345,100.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 22,741 shares in the company, valued at $3,058,891.91. This trade represents a 30.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Alicia J. Davis sold 6,630 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.98, for a total transaction of $881,657.40. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 9,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,326,076.56. This represents a 39.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 30,220 shares of company stock valued at $3,986,427 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

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.