Vest Financial LLC Has $2.61 Million Stake in Lear Corporation $LEA

Vest Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) by 134.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,951 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,904 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Lear were worth $2,611,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in LEA. Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its stake in shares of Lear by 75.6% in the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 1,801,284 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $171,086,000 after buying an additional 775,476 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lear by 78.6% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,269,500 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $120,577,000 after purchasing an additional 558,538 shares in the last quarter. Oldfield Partners LLP increased its position in shares of Lear by 0.4% in the second quarter. Oldfield Partners LLP now owns 612,218 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $58,148,000 after purchasing an additional 2,394 shares during the period. RWC Asset Management LLP raised its stake in Lear by 3.8% in the third quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 570,048 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $57,353,000 after purchasing an additional 20,900 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Lear in the second quarter valued at about $48,468,000. 97.04% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lear Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:LEA opened at $121.70 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.35. Lear Corporation has a 52-week low of $73.85 and a 52-week high of $127.36. The company has a market capitalization of $6.31 billion, a PE ratio of 14.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a fifty day moving average of $114.30 and a 200-day moving average of $107.40.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 31st. The auto parts company reported $2.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.63 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 13.44% and a net margin of 1.92%.Lear’s quarterly revenue was up 1.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.89 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Lear Corporation will post 12.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 30th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 10th were issued a $0.77 dividend. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, December 10th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.65%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lear news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.17, for a total transaction of $590,850.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 15,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,801,383.48. The trade was a 24.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.91% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on LEA shares. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Lear from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 3rd. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Lear from $136.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Lear from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. UBS Group upped their target price on Lear from $110.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Lear from $125.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $126.20.

Lear Company 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.