Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) Cut to “Hold” at HSBC

HSBC cut shares of Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $100.00 price target on the auto parts company’s stock, down from their prior price target of $109.00.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on ALV. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Autoliv from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Autoliv from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $109.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Autoliv from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Daiwa America raised Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $117.23.

Autoliv Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALV opened at $93.83 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $96.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $96.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The company has a market capitalization of $7.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.63, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 1.58. Autoliv has a 1-year low of $89.51 and a 1-year high of $129.38.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The auto parts company reported $3.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 expect that Autoliv will post 10.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.98%. This is a positive change from Autoliv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 3rd. Autoliv’s payout ratio is presently 34.70%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Autoliv

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Autoliv by 139.5% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 273 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Autoliv during the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Autoliv by 2,115.5% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,282 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $213,000 after buying an additional 2,179 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Autoliv during the third quarter valued at approximately $222,000. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 2,501 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $235,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.57% of the company’s stock.

Autoliv Company Profile

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.