Mackenzie Financial Corp Makes New $7.10 Million Investment in Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA)

Key Points

• Mackenzie Financial Corp has acquired a new stake in Lear Corporation, purchasing 80,515 shares valued at approximately $7.1 million, representing about 0.15% of the company.
• Recent insider transactions include CEO Raymond E. Scott and CFO Jason M. Cardew each selling 5,000 shares, resulting in a significant decrease in their respective ownership stakes.
• Analysts have given mixed reviews, with Bank of America raising its price target to $115 while Morgan Stanley lowered theirs to $115, reflecting varying confidence in Lear's stock performance.

Mackenzie Financial Corp acquired a new position in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 80,515 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $7,103,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp owned 0.15% of Lear as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LEA. Quadrant Capital Group LLC increased 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 worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Putney Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Lear during the fourth quarter worth about $58,000. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its position in Lear by 131.8% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 765 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $67,000 after buying an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional bought a new position in shares of Lear during the 1st quarter worth approximately $71,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lear by 57.9% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 938 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 344 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.04% of the company's stock.

Lear Trading Up 1.8%

LEA stock traded up $1.71 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $94.64. 120,046 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 722,012. Lear Corporation has a 12-month low of $73.85 and a 12-month high of $119.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $92.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.05, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.30.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 analyst estimates of $5.89 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 13.94% and a net margin of 2.05%. Lear's quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.60 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lear Corporation will post 12.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 5th were given a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 5th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. Lear's dividend payout ratio is 35.94%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 5,000 shares of Lear stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.77, for a total value of $483,850.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 38,729 shares in the company, valued at $3,747,805.33. The trade was a 11.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.47, for a total transaction of $492,350.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 20,244 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,993,426.68. This represents a 19.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,187 shares of company stock worth $1,086,425. Insiders own 0.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on LEA. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Lear from $116.00 to $109.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 28th. Citigroup upped their target price on Lear from $123.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Lear from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 16th. Barclays upped their price target on Lear from $100.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Lear from $119.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $113.00.

Lear Company Profile

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.