Nomura Holdings Inc. Acquires Shares of 7,210 Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)

Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 7,210 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $683,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of LEA. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its position in Lear by 68.2% during the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in Lear by 51.1% during the 4th quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 491 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Lear by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,709 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $351,000 after buying an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lear by 187.0% during the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 287 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lear by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 2,301 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lear Stock Down 1.6%

NYSE LEA traded down $1.46 on Friday, reaching $89.08. The company had a trading volume of 694,944 shares, compared to its average volume of 738,292. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.76 billion, a PE ratio of 9.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.30. Lear Co. has a 1 year low of $73.85 and a 1 year high of $127.58. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $86.86 and a 200-day moving average of $92.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 1.32 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The auto parts company reported $3.12 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.48. Lear had a return on equity of 14.70% and a net margin of 2.17%. The company had revenue of $5.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.47 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.18 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Lear Co. will post 12.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 5th. Lear's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.11%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Rod Lache acquired 2,178 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $91.80 per share, for a total transaction of $199,940.40. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 is available at the SEC website. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on LEA shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lear from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Lear from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Lear from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Lear from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $95.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Lear from $83.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $112.09.

About Lear

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.