Harvest Investment Advisors LLC Takes $1.99 Million Position in Lear Corporation $LEA

Harvest Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 17,375 shares of the auto parts company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,991,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in shares of Lear by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 7,756 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $889,000 after acquiring an additional 387 shares during the last quarter. &PARTNERS bought a new position in shares of Lear during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $259,000. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Lear by 13.8% during the 4th quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 9,700 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,112,000 after acquiring an additional 1,173 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC boosted its position in shares of Lear by 31.8% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 12,857 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,477,000 after acquiring an additional 3,103 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in Lear by 16.5% in the fourth quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 515,175 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $59,039,000 after buying an additional 73,068 shares during the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lear Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of LEA opened at $141.50 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The business has a fifty day moving average of $134.12 and a 200 day moving average of $125.80. Lear Corporation has a 52-week low of $89.29 and a 52-week high of $150.33. The company has a market cap of $7.09 billion, a PE ratio of 14.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.23.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The auto parts company reported $3.87 earnings per share 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.84 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.12 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Lear Corporation will post 14.61 EPS for the current year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 3rd will be paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 3rd. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.80%.

Lear News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors may be encouraged by Lear’s recent earnings beat, which showed EPS of $3.87 versus estimates of $3.51 and revenue growth of 4.7% year over year, reinforcing confidence in the company’s profitability and execution.
• Positive Sentiment: The stock’s strong technical setup relative to its 50-day and 200-day moving averages suggests momentum has been improving, which can attract buyers when there is no negative company news.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lear news, SVP Nicholas Jon Roelli sold 2,336 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.38, for a total value of $330,263.68. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 2,339 shares in the company, valued at $330,687.82. This trade represents a 49.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $147.50, for a total value of $737,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,241 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,953,047.50. The trade was a 27.41% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 12,026 shares of company stock worth $1,729,748 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.02% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on LEA shares. Benchmark started coverage on Lear in a research report on Thursday, February 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $170.00 price target for the company. Barclays raised their price target on Lear from $140.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Lear from $115.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Citigroup raised their price target on Lear from $177.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on Lear in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lear has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.08.

Lear Profile

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.