Quantbot Technologies LP Sells 8,883 Shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)

Quantbot Technologies LP decreased its position in shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) by 42.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,065 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 8,883 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Lear were worth $1,143,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Greenhaven Associates Inc. raised its stake in Lear by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Greenhaven Associates Inc. now owns 1,842,247 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $174,461,000 after buying an additional 22,601 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Lear by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,141,476 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $124,621,000 after acquiring an additional 44,128 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lear by 6.9% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 715,788 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $78,128,000 after purchasing an additional 46,303 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Lear by 17.1% during the 4th 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 purchasing an additional 99,072 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ARGA Investment Management LP grew its stake in Lear by 25.7% during the fourth quarter. ARGA Investment Management LP now owns 595,615 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $56,405,000 after purchasing an additional 121,734 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.04% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lear news, Director Rod Lache bought 2,178 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $91.80 per share, with a total value of $199,940.40. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,178 shares in the company, valued at $199,940.40. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.79% of the company’s stock.

Lear Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:LEA opened at $95.84 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $95.55 and its 200 day moving average is $98.58. Lear Co. has a 12-month low of $86.28 and a 12-month high of $146.19. The stock has a market cap of $5.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.72, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59.

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

Lear Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be paid a $0.77 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $3.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.45%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LEA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on Lear from $147.00 to $143.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 27th. Cowen cut shares of Lear from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Lear from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. TD Cowen downgraded Lear from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $95.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Lear from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lear currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $123.36.

About Lear

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.