Swiss National Bank Cuts Stock Holdings in Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV)

Key Points

• The Swiss National Bank reduced its stake in Autoliv, Inc. by 3.1%, holding approximately 145,000 shares valued at $12.83 million as of the latest filing.
• Autoliv has announced a $2.50 billion share buyback plan, allowing the company to reacquire up to 31.3% of its stock, reflecting confidence in the stock's value.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend increase to $0.85 per share, representing a 2.9% yield, which is an increase from the previous dividend of $0.70.

Swiss National Bank cut its holdings in shares of Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV - Free Report) by 3.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 145,000 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 4,700 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.19% of Autoliv worth $12,825,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Autoliv by 418.3% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,483,726 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $219,686,000 after purchasing an additional 2,004,515 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Autoliv by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,623,600 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $152,275,000 after purchasing an additional 134,347 shares during the last quarter. Lancaster Investment Management lifted its position in shares of Autoliv by 58.8% during the 1st quarter. Lancaster Investment Management now owns 903,537 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $79,918,000 after buying an additional 334,716 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Autoliv by 13.0% during the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 793,306 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $70,168,000 after buying an additional 91,312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park West Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Autoliv by 56.3% during the 4th quarter. Park West Asset Management LLC now owns 625,000 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $58,619,000 after buying an additional 225,000 shares during the last quarter. 69.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Autoliv news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,555 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.32, for a total transaction of $168,437.60. Following the sale, the director owned 77,493 shares in the company, 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 available at this hyperlink. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Autoliv Price Performance

Autoliv stock opened at $118.91 on Friday. Autoliv, Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.49 and a 52 week high of $119.05. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $113.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $100.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market cap of $9.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.01, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.39.

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

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

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. This is a boost from Autoliv's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Autoliv's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on Autoliv from $126.00 to $124.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 21st. BNP Paribas raised Autoliv from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Autoliv in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $140.00 price objective for the company. BNP Paribas Exane raised Autoliv from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $123.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Autoliv from $103.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twelve have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $120.64.

About Autoliv

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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