LSV Asset Management Grows Stock Holdings in Lear Corporation $LEA

LSV Asset Management grew its position in shares of Lear Corporation (NYSE:LEA) by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 680,931 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 31,203 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management owned about 1.28% of Lear worth $68,508,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in Lear by 1,384.2% in the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 282 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. WealthCollab LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lear in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lear in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lear by 34.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 422 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in Lear by 100.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 454 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the period. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Jason M. Cardew sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.17, for a total value of $590,850.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 15,244 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,801,383.48. This represents a 24.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.91% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LEA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Argus upgraded shares of Lear to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Lear from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Lear from $112.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Lear from $146.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $121.00 target price on shares of Lear in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $135.10.

Key Stories Impacting Lear

Here are the key news stories impacting Lear this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Lear’s Board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.77 per share — a direct shareholder return that signals management confidence in near-term cash flow. At the current quote (~$136.78) that works out to roughly a 2.3% annualized yield. Lear Declares Quarterly Cash Dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent fundamentals remain supportive: Lear reported a February quarterly beat (EPS $3.41 vs. $2.67 est.; revenue $5.99B vs. $5.78B), which helps explain the board’s willingness to pay a cash dividend — but shareholders should watch upcoming guidance and free-cash-flow trends for sustainability. (No new guidance was announced in the dividend release.)
• Neutral Sentiment: Other items in the feed (theater listings, opinion pieces about options, unrelated company news) are not material to LEA’s near-term stock performance and unlikely to move the share price.

Lear Trading Down 1.5%

NYSE LEA opened at $136.78 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $7.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.30. Lear Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $73.85 and a fifty-two week high of $142.84. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $120.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $109.69. 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 announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The auto parts company reported $3.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.67 by $0.74. The company had revenue of $5.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.78 billion. Lear had a return on equity of 13.40% and a net margin of 1.88%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.94 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Lear Corporation will post 12.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Lear Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 5th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. Lear’s 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.