Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $117.23.

ALV has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays decreased their target price on Autoliv from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com raised Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded Autoliv from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $109.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Autoliv from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $101.00 to $97.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 16th.

Autoliv Trading Up 0.2 %

Autoliv stock opened at $94.44 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.58. Autoliv has a 52 week low of $89.51 and a 52 week high of $129.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $96.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $96.73.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The auto parts company reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.21. Autoliv had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 28.62%. Research analysts forecast that Autoliv will post 10.05 EPS for the current year.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. This is a boost from Autoliv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.70%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 10.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 987,375 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $92,221,000 after purchasing an additional 95,888 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Autoliv by 38.3% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 276,315 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $25,800,000 after buying an additional 76,510 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its position in Autoliv by 1,437.4% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 51,994 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $4,855,000 after acquiring an additional 48,612 shares in the last quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Autoliv by 32.9% during the third quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 135,424 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $12,645,000 after buying an additional 33,490 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC grew its stake in shares of Autoliv by 41.5% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 30,216 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,821,000 after acquiring an additional 8,859 shares in the last quarter. 69.57% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Autoliv

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.