Visteon Corporation (NASDAQ:VC) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Visteon has an average analyst rating of “Moderate Buy”, with 9 buy ratings and 5 hold ratings across 14 brokerages. The average 12-month price target is about $125.67.
• The company’s most recent quarter showed mixed results: earnings per share came in at $1.65, below estimates, while revenue of $954 million topped expectations and rose 2.1% year over year.
• Visteon also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.375 per share, equal to $1.50 annually and a yield of about 1.3%. Meanwhile, insiders sold shares in recent months, and institutional investors increased holdings.

Shares of Visteon Corporation (NASDAQ:VC - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the fourteen brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nine have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $125.6667.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Visteon from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Visteon from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Visteon from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley set a $115.00 price target on shares of Visteon in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $117.00 price target on shares of Visteon in a research report on Friday, February 20th.

Insider Activity at Visteon

In related news, CAO Colleen Elizabeth Myers sold 475 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.92, for a total transaction of $52,687.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 241 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $26,731.72. This trade represents a 66.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Robert R. Vallance sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.50, for a total transaction of $233,000.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 18,469 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,151,638.50. The trade was a 9.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 58,901 shares of company stock valued at $6,699,220 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 2.00% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Visteon

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in Visteon by 130.1% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 396,310 shares of the company's stock valued at $36,108,000 after acquiring an additional 224,097 shares in the last quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. grew its stake in shares of Visteon by 355.9% in the 1st quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 16,452 shares of the company's stock worth $1,499,000 after buying an additional 12,843 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its stake in shares of Visteon by 54.4% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 8,178 shares of the company's stock worth $745,000 after buying an additional 2,880 shares in the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Visteon by 25.5% in the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 32,697 shares of the company's stock worth $2,979,000 after buying an additional 6,653 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in shares of Visteon by 103.2% in the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 45,410 shares of the company's stock worth $4,137,000 after buying an additional 23,066 shares in the last quarter. 99.71% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Visteon Price Performance

VC stock opened at $117.70 on Thursday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $107.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $100.54. Visteon has a 12-month low of $83.49 and a 12-month high of $129.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.34, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.17.

Visteon (NASDAQ:VC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.96 by ($0.31). Visteon had a net margin of 5.99% and a return on equity of 15.93%. The company had revenue of $954.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $901.33 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. Visteon's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Visteon will post 8.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Visteon Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.375 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Visteon's dividend payout ratio is 18.27%.

About Visteon

Visteon Corporation is a global automotive electronics supplier that specializes in designing, engineering and manufacturing cockpit electronics and connected vehicle solutions. The company's product portfolio spans digital instrument clusters, infotainment systems, domain controllers and advanced driver interaction technologies. By integrating hardware, software and services, Visteon aims to deliver complete cockpit electronics platforms that enhance driver experience, safety and connectivity.

Founded in 2000 as a spin-off from Ford Motor Company, Visteon has evolved its focus toward next-generation electronics and software-driven vehicle architectures.

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