SG Americas Securities LLC Reduces Stock Position in Lear Corporation $LEA

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC cut its Lear Corporation stake by 36.2% in the first quarter, selling 9,466 shares and leaving it with 16,658 shares valued at about $2.0 million.
• Lear recently reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, posting EPS of $3.87 versus estimates of $3.51, while revenue rose 4.7% year over year to $5.82 billion.
• Analysts remain mixed but generally constructive: TD Cowen upgraded Lear to Buy and several firms raised price targets, though the consensus rating is still Hold with an average target price of $143.38.

SG Americas Securities LLC trimmed its position in Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA - Free Report) by 36.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,658 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 9,466 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in Lear were worth $2,017,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in Lear by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 676 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $77,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Lear by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Inspire Advisors LLC now owns 2,147 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $246,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lear by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,389 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $274,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of Lear by 32.0% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 408 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the period. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lear by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 5,899 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $676,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Lear from $152.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 14th. TD Cowen upgraded Lear from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $138.00 to $165.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Morgan Stanley set a $130.00 price objective on shares of Lear in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Lear from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Lear from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. One investment 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $143.38.

Lear Stock Performance

Lear stock opened at $130.53 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $6.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.25. Lear Corporation has a 12 month low of $91.67 and a 12 month high of $150.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The stock's 50-day moving average is $137.20 and its 200-day moving average is $127.97.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The auto parts company reported $3.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.36. Lear had a return on equity of 13.69% and a net margin of 2.25%.The business had revenue of $5.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.84 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $3.12 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Lear Corporation will post 14.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd were given 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%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lear

In other news, CEO Raymond E. Scott sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.37, for a total value of $6,768,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 49,789 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,739,936.93. This trade represents a 50.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.50, for a total transaction of $737,500.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,241 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,953,047.50. This trade represents a 27.41% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 62,026 shares of company stock worth $8,498,248 over the last three months. 1.02% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Trending Headlines about Lear

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Neutral Sentiment: No material Lear-specific news was reported in the supplied articles, suggesting the stock’s move is likely being driven by broader market factors or normal trading activity rather than a fresh company announcement.
• Neutral Sentiment: Earlier background remains supportive: Lear recently reported quarterly EPS of $3.87, beating estimates, while revenue came in roughly in line with expectations and sales were up year over year, which may continue to underpin investor sentiment.

About Lear

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.