Insider Buying: Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) Director Buys 2,178 Shares of Stock

Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) Director Rod Lache acquired 2,178 shares of Lear stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were bought at an average price of $91.80 per share, for a total transaction of $199,940.40. Following the transaction, the director now owns 2,178 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $199,940.40. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Lear Price Performance

Shares of LEA traded up $2.84 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $97.79. 449,248 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 685,055. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $94.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $100.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.32. The company has a market cap of $5.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.44. Lear Co. has a 12-month low of $86.28 and a 12-month high of $147.11.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The auto parts company reported $2.94 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.50 by $0.44. Lear had a return on equity of 14.70% and a net margin of 2.17%. Research analysts expect that Lear Co. will post 12.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.45%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on LEA shares. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Lear from $120.00 to $115.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded Lear from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Lear from $99.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of Lear from $104.00 to $102.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Lear from $147.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.36.

Institutional Trading of Lear

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LEA. RWC Asset Management LLP increased its holdings in Lear by 23.3% during the 4th quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 410,908 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $38,913,000 after acquiring an additional 77,691 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its stake in Lear by 9.8% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 135,049 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $14,742,000 after purchasing an additional 12,094 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Lear by 16.9% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 39,465 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $3,759,000 after acquiring an additional 5,711 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Lear by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 676,977 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $64,110,000 after buying an additional 99,072 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Lear in the third quarter valued at about $1,946,000. 97.04% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lear Company Profile

Lear Corporation designs, develops, engineers, manufactures, assembles, and supplies automotive seating, and electrical distribution systems and related components for automotive original equipment manufacturers in North America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and South America. Its Seating segment offers seat systems, seat subsystems, keyseat components, seat trim covers, seat mechanisms, seat foams, and headrests, as well as surface materials, such as leather and fabric for automobiles and light trucks, compact cars, pick-up trucks, and sport utility vehicles.