Renaissance Technologies LLC Sells 49,500 Shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA)

Renaissance Technologies LLC trimmed its position in shares of Lear Co. (NYSE:LEA) by 31.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 106,800 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 49,500 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC’s holdings in Lear were worth $12,198,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Lear during the 4th quarter worth $79,611,000. Grimes & Company Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lear in the first quarter worth about $5,847,000. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC raised its position in shares of Lear by 56.2% in the fourth quarter. Campbell & CO Investment Adviser LLC now owns 20,129 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $2,842,000 after purchasing an additional 7,242 shares during the period. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp lifted its stake in shares of Lear by 307.9% during the 1st quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 12,869 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,864,000 after buying an additional 9,714 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB bought a new position in Lear in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,984,000. 97.04% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lear Price Performance

LEA opened at $108.02 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.78, a PEG ratio of 0.41 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Lear Co. has a 12-month low of $101.67 and a 12-month high of $147.11. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $113.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $123.79.

Lear (NYSE:LEA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The auto parts company reported $3.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.34 by $0.26. Lear had a net margin of 2.30% and a return on equity of 14.75%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.02 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.33 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Lear Co. will post 12.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lear Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.77 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 4th. This represents a $3.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.85%. Lear’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 33.59%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LEA has been the topic of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Lear from $179.00 to $166.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and issued a $132.00 target price on shares of Lear in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Lear from $136.00 to $128.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Lear from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Lear from $155.00 to $145.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $149.70.

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.