Lear (NYSE:LEA) Reaches New 1-Year Low - Here's What Happened

Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $83.30 and last traded at $85.82, with a volume of 526465 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $86.86.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LEA has been the topic of several research reports. Evercore ISI cut their target price on Lear from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Cowen downgraded shares of Lear from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Lear from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Lear in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. They set a "buy" rating and a $123.00 target price on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen cut Lear from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $95.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, March 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $113.91.

Lear Stock Down 1.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $88.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $94.00. The company has a market cap of $4.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.34.

Lear (NYSE:LEA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $2.94 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.44. Lear had a return on equity of 14.70% and a net margin of 2.17%. Research analysts expect that Lear Co. will post 12.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were given a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. Lear's payout ratio is 34.45%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lear news, Director Rod Lache bought 2,178 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $91.80 per share, with a total value of $199,940.40. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,178 shares of the company's stock, valued at $199,940.40. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.91% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Lear

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LEA. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Lear by 187.0% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 287 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Addison Advisors LLC increased its stake in Lear by 68.2% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 338 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Lear by 233.3% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 410 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group grew its position in Lear by 39.1% in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 427 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Finally, Quadrant Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Lear by 51.1% during the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 491 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lear

Lear Corporation designs, develops, engineers, manufactures, assembles, and supplies automotive seating, and electrical distribution systems and related components for automotive original equipment manufacturers in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and South America. Its Seating segment offers seat systems, seat subsystems, keyseat components, seat trim covers, seat mechanisms, seat foams, and headrests, as well as surface materials, such as leather and fabric for automobiles and light trucks, compact cars, pick-up trucks, and sport utility vehicles.

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