Alliancebernstein L.P. Trims Stock Position in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)

Alliancebernstein L.P. lowered its position in shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA - Free Report) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 87,877 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 3,299 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 0.16% of Lear worth $8,322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LEA. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Lear by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,491,895 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $614,782,000 after acquiring an additional 447,835 shares in the last quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lear by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 1,842,247 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $174,461,000 after buying an additional 22,601 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Lear by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,141,476 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $124,621,000 after buying an additional 44,128 shares in the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group acquired a new position in Lear during the 4th quarter worth approximately $90,700,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in Lear by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 676,977 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $64,110,000 after acquiring an additional 99,072 shares in the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lear Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of Lear stock traded up $1.14 on Thursday, hitting $78.65. The stock had a trading volume of 63,440 shares, compared to its average volume of 741,519. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $91.10 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $95.66. Lear Co. has a one year low of $73.85 and a one year high of $138.69. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. The stock has a market cap of $4.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.81, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.34.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $2.94 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.44. Lear had a return on equity of 14.70% and a net margin of 2.17%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lear Co. will post 12.89 EPS for the current year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.92%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. Lear's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on LEA. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Lear from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on shares of Lear from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 10th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Lear from $102.00 to $83.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Cowen downgraded shares of Lear from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Lear from $147.00 to $143.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $114.27.

Insider Transactions at Lear

In other news, Director Rod Lache acquired 2,178 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $91.80 per share, with a total value of $199,940.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,178 shares of the company's stock, valued at $199,940.40. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.79% of the company's stock.

Lear Company Profile

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.