Entropy Technologies LP Purchases Shares of 4,606 Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV)

Key Points

• Entropy Technologies LP has acquired a new stake in Autoliv, Inc., purchasing 4,606 shares valued at approximately $407,000.
• Several other hedge funds have increased their positions in Autoliv, with institutional investors currently owning 69.57% of the stock.
• Autoliv recently declared a quarterly dividend increase from $0.70 to $0.85 per share, reflecting its strong financial performance and positive outlook.

Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 4,606 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $407,000.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Autoliv by 122.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 370 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the period. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Autoliv during the 1st quarter valued at $44,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Autoliv by 63.4% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 678 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Autoliv by 188.6% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 788 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 515 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC increased its position in Autoliv by 22.1% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,027 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.57% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALV has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Autoliv from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $123.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on Autoliv in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $133.00 price objective for the company. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $135.00 price objective (up previously from $105.00) on shares of Autoliv in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Autoliv in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Autoliv from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Autoliv presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $120.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Autoliv news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,555 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.32, for a total transaction of $168,437.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 77,493 shares in the company, valued at $8,394,041.76. The trade was a 1.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Autoliv Stock Performance

NYSE ALV traded down $0.57 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $118.37. The company's stock had a trading volume of 451,045 shares, compared to its average volume of 734,631. Autoliv, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.49 and a 12 month high of $119.53. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $113.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $100.72. The company has a market cap of $9.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 18th. The auto parts company reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.07 by $0.14. Autoliv had a return on equity of 30.73% and a net margin of 6.83%. The company had revenue of $2.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.57 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.87 EPS. Autoliv's revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Autoliv, Inc. will post 9.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This is a positive change from Autoliv's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Autoliv's dividend payout ratio is 30.63%.

Autoliv announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 4th that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the auto parts company to repurchase up to 31.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Autoliv Company Profile

Autoliv, Inc, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and supplies passive safety systems to the automotive industry in Europe, the Americas, China, Japan, and rest of Asia. It offers passive safety systems, including modules and components for frontal-impact airbag protection systems, side-impact airbag protection systems, seatbelts, steering wheels, and inflator technologies.