Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Has $600,000 Position in Lear Corporation $LEA

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund lessened its stake in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) by 72.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,959 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 15,435 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Lear were worth $600,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Leuthold Group LLC increased its position in shares of Lear by 1,143.1% in the third quarter. Leuthold Group LLC now owns 33,576 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $3,378,000 after purchasing an additional 30,875 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management increased its holdings in Lear by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 680,931 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $68,508,000 after buying an additional 31,203 shares during the period. MQS Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lear in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $322,000. Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Lear during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $372,000. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lear by 31.8% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 6,040 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $608,000 after acquiring an additional 1,458 shares in the last quarter. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lear news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the firm’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 completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 15,244 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,801,383.48. This trade represents a 24.70% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.91% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Lear

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark initiated coverage of Lear with a “Buy” recommendation — a formal analyst endorsement that can draw institutional interest and support the share price; this follows Lear’s Feb. 4 quarter where EPS ($3.41) and revenue ($5.99B) both beat consensus, giving the firm momentum. Benchmark initiates coverage of Lear (LEA) with buy recommendation
• Neutral Sentiment: AI research commentary (Yann LeCun) highlights that current LLMs still fall short of human-like learning for real-world tasks such as driving — a reminder that timelines for full vehicle autonomy remain uncertain, which keeps the demand curve for some advanced automotive components (and related supplier investments) ambiguous for investors in component suppliers like Lear. Yann LeCun Says LLMs Are ‘Incredibly’ Useful, But AI Still Can’t Learn To Drive A Car Like A 17-Year Old

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Lear from $123.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Barclays set a $140.00 price target on Lear in a report on Thursday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Lear in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Lear from $146.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Lear from $112.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lear has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $138.27.

Lear Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NYSE LEA opened at $134.71 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $124.10 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.41. The stock has a market cap of $6.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.30. Lear Corporation has a 52-week low of $73.85 and a 52-week high of $142.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.35.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The auto parts company reported $3.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.67 by $0.74. The company had revenue of $5.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.78 billion. Lear had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 13.40%. Lear’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.94 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lear Corporation will post 12.89 EPS for the current year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 5th will be issued a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 5th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. Lear’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.79%.

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.