Convergence Investment Partners LLC Buys Shares of 9,787 Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA)

Convergence Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 9,787 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $863,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEA. Schroder Investment Management Group bought a new stake in shares of Lear in the 4th quarter valued at about $90,700,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in shares of Lear by 29.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 2,212,579 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $209,531,000 after acquiring an additional 498,918 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lear by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,491,895 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $614,782,000 after acquiring an additional 447,835 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of Lear by 45.9% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,133,186 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $107,313,000 after acquiring an additional 356,760 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Lear in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,881,000. Institutional investors own 97.04% of the company's stock.

Lear Stock Down 8.1%

Shares of LEA stock traded down $8.77 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $99.37. 1,670,335 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 648,202. Lear Corporation has a 1 year low of $73.85 and a 1 year high of $125.09. The company's 50 day moving average is $96.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.90. The company has a current ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. The firm has a market cap of $5.31 billion, a PE ratio of 11.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.29.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 25th. The auto parts company reported $3.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.24. The firm had revenue of $6.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.89 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 14.53% and a net margin of 2.09%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lear Corporation will post 12.89 EPS for the current year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 5th were paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. Lear's payout ratio is currently 36.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lear

In other Lear news, Director Conrad L. Mallett, Jr. sold 1,187 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.86, for a total transaction of $110,224.82. Following the sale, the director directly owned 84 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,800.24. This trade represents a 93.39% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.91% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LEA shares. Wall Street Zen raised Lear from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Barclays boosted their target price on Lear from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Lear from $125.00 to $115.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Lear from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target on Lear from $123.00 to $136.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $113.64.

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.