SG Americas Securities LLC Makes New Investment in Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV)

SG Americas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 7,204 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $637,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its stake in shares of Autoliv by 74.4% during the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 314 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Autoliv by 122.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 370 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new stake in Autoliv during the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Autoliv during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Autoliv by 188.6% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 788 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $70,000 after purchasing an additional 515 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.57% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ALV shares. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on Autoliv in a research note on Wednesday. They set an "outperform" rating and a $133.00 price objective on the stock. Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Autoliv in a report on Thursday, March 6th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Autoliv from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Finally, 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. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $115.27.

Autoliv Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ALV traded down $1.11 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $110.82. 762,623 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 808,742. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.36. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $100.20 and its 200 day simple moving average is $95.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.97. Autoliv, Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.49 and a 52 week high of $113.08.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The auto parts company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.43. Autoliv had a return on equity of 30.47% and a net margin of 6.63%. The firm had revenue of $2.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.58 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Autoliv, Inc. will post 9.51 EPS for the current year.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. 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 dividend yield of 3.07%. Autoliv's dividend payout ratio is 32.22%.

Autoliv announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 4th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the auto parts company to repurchase up to 31.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,555 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.32, for a total value of $168,437.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 77,493 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,394,041.76. The trade was a 1.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.30% of the stock is 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.