Impax Asset Management Group plc Has $7.46 Million Stake in Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV)

Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its stake in shares of Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV - Free Report) by 11.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 84,358 shares of the auto parts company's stock after buying an additional 8,953 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned approximately 0.11% of Autoliv worth $7,461,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ALV. AlphaQuest LLC raised its holdings in Autoliv by 74.4% in the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 314 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Autoliv by 122.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 370 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new position in shares of Autoliv in the first quarter valued at $44,000. Twin Tree Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Autoliv in the fourth quarter valued at $50,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Autoliv in the fourth quarter valued at $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.57% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ALV shares. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Autoliv from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $103.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada initiated coverage on shares of Autoliv in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $133.00 price target for the company. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Autoliv from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $123.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Autoliv in a report on Wednesday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $140.00 target price for the company. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $117.06.

Autoliv Price Performance

Shares of Autoliv stock traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $117.74. The company had a trading volume of 732,431 shares, compared to its average volume of 812,219. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $9.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.37. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $104.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.72. Autoliv, Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.49 and a 1-year high of $118.34.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The auto parts company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.43. The company had revenue of $2.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. Autoliv had a return on equity of 30.47% and a net margin of 6.63%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.58 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Autoliv, Inc. will post 9.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This is a boost from Autoliv's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.89%. Autoliv's payout ratio is currently 32.22%.

Autoliv declared that its Board of Directors 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 reacquire up to 31.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Autoliv

In other Autoliv news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,555 shares of Autoliv stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.32, for a total transaction of $168,437.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 77,493 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,394,041.76. The trade was a 1.97% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Autoliv 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.