Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board Lowers Stock Position in Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV)

Key Points

• The Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board reduced its ownership in Autoliv, Inc. by 12.5%, selling 2,857 shares and holding a total of 19,962 shares valued at approximately $1.77 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Autoliv reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $2.21, exceeding the consensus estimate of $2.07, and had revenue of $2.71 billion, which rose by 4.2% year-over-year.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend from $0.70 to $0.85 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.0%.

Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board lessened its holdings in Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV - Free Report) by 12.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 19,962 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 2,857 shares during the period. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board's holdings in Autoliv were worth $1,766,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Autoliv by 122.9% during the first 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 during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Autoliv during the first quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Autoliv by 63.4% during the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 678 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in Autoliv by 188.6% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 788 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $70,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC raised its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 22.1% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,027 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $91,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.57% of the company's stock.

Autoliv Stock Down 0.5%

ALV stock opened at $113.28 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $8.70 billion, a PE ratio of 12.39, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 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. The firm's fifty day moving average is $112.10 and its 200 day moving average is $100.09. Autoliv, Inc. has a one year low of $75.49 and a one year high of $118.98.

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

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This is a positive change from Autoliv's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Autoliv's payout ratio is 30.63%.

Autoliv declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, June 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the auto parts company to purchase up to 31.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on ALV. BNP Paribas raised shares of Autoliv from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Autoliv from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $123.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $135.00 price objective (up previously from $105.00) on shares of Autoliv in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $95.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Autoliv presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $120.64.

Insider Transactions at Autoliv

In other Autoliv news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,555 shares of the 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 transaction, the director directly owned 77,493 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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 SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.

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