Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Robert W. Baird Analyst Says

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV - Free Report) had its target price increased by Robert W. Baird from $108.00 to $126.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the auto parts company's stock.

ALV has been the subject of several other reports. BNP Paribas Exane upgraded shares of Autoliv from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $123.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday, May 9th. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Autoliv from $95.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Autoliv from $103.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Autoliv in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating and a $140.00 price target for the company. Finally, BNP Paribas raised shares of Autoliv from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Autoliv has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $119.31.

Autoliv Stock Performance

Shares of ALV stock traded down $0.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $117.72. The stock had a trading volume of 544,465 shares, compared to its average volume of 812,036. Autoliv has a fifty-two week low of $75.49 and a fifty-two week high of $118.98. The firm has a market cap of $9.10 billion, a PE ratio of 13.55, a PEG ratio of 1.98 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $106.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.55.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The auto parts company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.43. Autoliv had a net margin of 6.63% and a return on equity of 30.47%. The company had revenue of $2.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.58 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Autoliv will post 9.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Autoliv declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase 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 reacquire up to 31.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $0.85 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. This is an increase from Autoliv's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Autoliv's dividend payout ratio is currently 32.22%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Autoliv news, Director Jan Carlson sold 1,555 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.32, for a total transaction of $168,437.60. Following the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Autoliv

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ALV. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in Autoliv in the second quarter worth $620,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lifted its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 21.5% during the second quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 13,000 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $1,454,000 after acquiring an additional 2,300 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 7.0% during the second quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 4,413 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $520,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Autoliv during the second quarter valued at $464,000. Finally, Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 26.3% during the second quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,397,735 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $268,307,000 after acquiring an additional 499,411 shares during the period. 69.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.