Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen research firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $134.40.

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Autoliv from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $109.00 to $140.00 in a report on Wednesday, November 26th. Robert W. Baird set a $132.00 target price on shares of Autoliv in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Autoliv from $146.00 to $141.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Wolfe Research set a $143.00 price target on shares of Autoliv in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Autoliv from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 31st.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Magnus Jarlegren sold 1,598 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.61, for a total transaction of $194,332.78. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $941,139.79. This represents a 17.11% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Franz-Josef Kortuem sold 8,300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.40, for a total value of $999,320.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 5,549 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $668,099.60. This represents a 59.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 22,243 shares of company stock worth $2,713,735. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Autoliv

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 717,991 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $85,226,000 after acquiring an additional 37,117 shares during the last quarter. Caitlin John LLC purchased a new stake in Autoliv in the 4th quarter worth about $321,000. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. lifted its stake in Autoliv by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 11,373 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,350,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp purchased a new position in shares of Autoliv during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,453,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC boosted its position in shares of Autoliv by 24.2% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,689 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,981,000 after buying an additional 3,252 shares during the period. 69.57% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Autoliv Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of ALV stock opened at $110.48 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.05. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $123.25 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $121.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.25 billion, a PE ratio of 11.56, a PEG ratio of 0.94 and a beta of 1.32. Autoliv has a 52-week low of $75.49 and a 52-week high of $130.14.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The auto parts company reported $3.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.85 by $0.34. Autoliv had a return on equity of 30.42% and a net margin of 6.80%.During the same period last year, the business earned $3.05 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Autoliv will post 9.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 19th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.40%.

Autoliv Company Profile

Autoliv Inc (NYSE: ALV) is a leading global supplier of automotive safety systems, specializing in the design, development and manufacture of passive and active safety products. Its core product portfolio includes airbags, seatbelts, steering wheels, restraint control modules and pedestrian protection systems. In recent years, the company has also expanded into active safety technologies, offering radar, camera and sensor solutions that support advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and autonomous driving applications.

Founded in 1997 following the spin-off of Electrolux’s automotive safety business, Autoliv has evolved into a multinational organization with a presence in over 27 countries.