Lear Corporation $LEA Stake Boosted by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC increased its Lear stake by 72.9% in the first quarter to 44,235 shares valued at approximately $5.36 million. Institutional investors collectively own 97.04% of the company.
• Lear’s second-quarter results exceeded expectations, with adjusted EPS of $4.28 and revenue of $6.21 billion. The company also raised its 2026 outlook, citing revenue growth and improving margins.
• Despite the strong results, analyst sentiment remains mixed: Lear has a consensus “Hold” rating and a $145.31 target price, while recent insider selling and a possible “sell-the-news” reaction may weigh on the stock.

Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA - Free Report) by 72.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 44,235 shares of the auto parts company's stock after purchasing an additional 18,657 shares during the quarter. Empowered Funds LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Lear worth $5,356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its holdings in shares of Lear by 14.4% during the first quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 151,156 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $18,302,000 after purchasing an additional 18,990 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in shares of Lear in the 1st quarter valued at about $210,000. Entropy Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Lear during the 1st quarter valued at about $483,000. Compound Planning Inc. grew its position in shares of Lear by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. Compound Planning Inc. now owns 2,208 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $267,000 after buying an additional 198 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Inceptionr LLC acquired a new stake in Lear during the first quarter worth about $459,000. Institutional investors own 97.04% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Lear

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lear reported second-quarter adjusted EPS of $4.28, above the approximately $3.98 consensus estimate, while revenue of $6.21 billion also exceeded expectations of roughly $6.15 billion. EPS rose from $3.06 a year earlier and revenue increased 3%. Lear Reports Second Quarter 2026 Results; Raises Full-Year Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: The company raised the midpoints of its 2026 outlook, targeting revenue of approximately $23.54 billion to $24.01 billion and core operating earnings of about $1.08 billion to $1.20 billion. Lear cited roughly 3% year-over-year revenue growth, gains above overall vehicle-market growth, and improving operating margins. Lear Reports Second Quarter 2026 Results; Raises Full-Year Guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Adjusted EPS increased about 23% year over year, free cash flow improved by approximately $117 million, and Lear repurchased $100 million of stock during the quarter. Lear Corporation 2026 Q2 Results Presentation
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst price targets remain mixed, with recent targets ranging from $131 to $179 and a six-month median of $145.50, indicating differing views on Lear’s earnings power and automotive-market prospects.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors appear to have treated the results as a “sell-the-news” event because the guidance increase and margin improvement may not have exceeded already high expectations. Separately, reported insider activity showed 20 open-market sales and no purchases over the past six months, which may add to near-term sentiment pressure. Lear Slides After Q2 Despite Higher 2026 Outlook

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LEA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Lear from $138.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. Morgan Stanley set a $130.00 price target on Lear in a research report on Monday, May 4th. UBS Group cut their price target on Lear from $145.00 to $135.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered Lear from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Lear from $177.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $145.31.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Conrad L. Mallett, Jr. sold 190 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.34, for a total value of $26,854.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,683 shares of the company's stock, valued at $237,875.22. This represents a 10.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $147.50, for a total transaction of $737,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 13,241 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,953,047.50. This represents a 27.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 62,026 shares of company stock valued at $8,498,248 over the last three months. 1.02% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Lear Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LEA opened at $130.63 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $140.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $131.11. The company has a market cap of $6.54 billion, a PE ratio of 12.17, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.25. Lear Corporation has a 12-month low of $91.67 and a 12-month high of $150.33.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 31st. The auto parts company reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.98 by $0.30. Lear had a return on equity of 13.69% and a net margin of 2.25%.The business had revenue of $6.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.15 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.06 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Lear Corporation will post 14.81 EPS for the current year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd were paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Lear's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.80%.

Lear Profile

Lear Corporation NYSE: LEA is a global supplier of automotive seating and electrical distribution systems. The company designs, engineers and manufactures complete seat systems, seat components and power solutions for major vehicle manufacturers. Its electrical business delivers modules and components for battery management, infotainment, body and safety electronics, as well as advanced connectivity and electrification solutions.

The seating division develops lightweight, ergonomic seat structures, trim and mechanisms that address comfort, safety and environmental targets.

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