Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Increases Stock Position in Autoliv, Inc. $ALV

Key Points

• Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. increased its stake in Autoliv, Inc. by 34.1% during the first quarter, now holding 25,489 shares valued at approximately $2.25 million.
• Autoliv recently reported quarterly earnings of $2.21 per share, surpassing analysts' expectations, with revenue increasing by 4.2% year-over-year to $2.71 billion.
• The company's dividend has been raised from $0.70 to $0.85, representing a 2.9% yield, with approval for a significant stock repurchase plan of $2.50 billion to enhance shareholder value.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. increased its position in shares of Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV - Free Report) by 34.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,489 shares of the auto parts company's stock after buying an additional 6,485 shares during the period. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.'s holdings in Autoliv were worth $2,255,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in Autoliv by 22.4% during the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 182,541 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $16,146,000 after acquiring an additional 33,461 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Autoliv by 14.4% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,857,069 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $164,257,000 after acquiring an additional 233,469 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC raised its position in Autoliv by 7.1% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 8,411 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $744,000 after acquiring an additional 556 shares during the period. SouthState Corp acquired a new position in Autoliv during the first quarter worth $25,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in Autoliv during the first quarter worth $490,000. 69.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Autoliv

In related news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,555 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 77,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,394,041.76. This trade represents a 1.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on ALV shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Autoliv in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $103.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Autoliv from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $123.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $135.00 target price (up from $105.00) on shares of Autoliv in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Autoliv currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $120.64.

Autoliv Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ALV traded up $4.1020 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $124.1820. The company's stock had a trading volume of 432,996 shares, compared to its average volume of 592,431. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $114.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $101.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.93. Autoliv, Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.49 and a 1-year high of $124.82.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The auto parts company reported $2.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.07 by $0.14. Autoliv had a net margin of 6.83% and a return on equity of 30.73%. The business had revenue of $2.71 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.87 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Autoliv, Inc. will post 9.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, June 4th that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the auto parts company to purchase up to 31.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This is an increase from Autoliv's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Autoliv's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.63%.

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.