Short Interest in Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) Declines By 15.2%

Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 1,730,000 shares, a decrease of 15.2% from the February 28th total of 2,040,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 837,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.1 days. Approximately 2.2% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on ALV shares. Pareto Securities lowered shares of Autoliv to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Cowen started coverage on Autoliv in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Hsbc Global Res lowered Autoliv from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, HSBC downgraded shares of Autoliv from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $109.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Autoliv presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.14.

Autoliv Stock Down 0.9 %

ALV stock opened at $88.45 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.96, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Autoliv has a 1-year low of $87.55 and a 1-year high of $129.38. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $95.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $95.57.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.21. Autoliv had a return on equity of 28.62% and a net margin of 6.21%. Equities analysts forecast that Autoliv will post 9.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.70%.

Insider Transactions at Autoliv

In other Autoliv news, CEO Mikael Bratt sold 5,760 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total transaction of $569,664.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 23,307 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,305,062.30. The trade was a 19.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Per Jonas Jademyr sold 401 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.85, for a total transaction of $39,638.85. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 685 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $67,712.25. This represents a 36.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 9,253 shares of company stock worth $915,534. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Autoliv

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Autoliv by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,146,500 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $670,270,000 after buying an additional 641,895 shares during the last quarter. FIL Ltd lifted its holdings in Autoliv by 17.3% in the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 2,382,265 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $223,433,000 after acquiring an additional 351,876 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Autoliv by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,623,600 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $152,275,000 after purchasing an additional 134,347 shares during the last quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD grew its stake in shares of Autoliv by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 1,378,636 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $133,259,000 after purchasing an additional 59,592 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Autoliv by 12.5% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,023,937 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $96,035,000 after purchasing an additional 113,500 shares during the last quarter. 69.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.