Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

StockNews.com cut shares of Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on ALV. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Autoliv in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $120.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Autoliv from $101.00 to $97.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, December 16th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Autoliv from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Autoliv from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $116.00 price target on shares of Autoliv in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Autoliv presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.46.

Autoliv Stock Performance

Shares of Autoliv stock opened at $93.69 on Wednesday. Autoliv has a 12 month low of $89.51 and a 12 month high of $129.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The stock has a market cap of $7.38 billion, a PE ratio of 12.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.59. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.36.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The auto parts company reported $1.84 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. Autoliv had a return on equity of 30.85% and a net margin of 5.98%. The company’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.66 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Autoliv will post 8.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 19th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 3rd were paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 3rd. This is a positive change from Autoliv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.99%. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.46%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Autoliv

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in shares of Autoliv by 1,437.4% in the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 51,994 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $4,855,000 after acquiring an additional 48,612 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Autoliv by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 987,375 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $92,221,000 after purchasing an additional 95,888 shares during the period. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC grew its position in Autoliv by 32.9% in the 3rd quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 135,424 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $12,645,000 after purchasing an additional 33,490 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 35.8% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 272,793 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $29,186,000 after purchasing an additional 71,931 shares during the period. Finally, Beddow Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Autoliv by 14.4% during the third quarter. Beddow Capital Management Inc. now owns 80,897 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $7,553,000 after buying an additional 10,198 shares during the last quarter. 69.57% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.