StockNews.com Downgrades Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) to Hold

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

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Autoliv from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America cut their target price on Autoliv from $137.00 to $134.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Autoliv from $115.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $116.00 price objective on shares of Autoliv in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Autoliv in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $120.00 target price on the stock. Seven 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 company. According to MarketBeat, Autoliv presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.46.

Autoliv Price Performance

Autoliv stock opened at $95.18 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $100.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.39, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Autoliv has a 52-week low of $89.51 and a 52-week high of $129.38.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The auto parts company reported $1.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.52 billion. Autoliv had a net margin of 5.98% and a return on equity of 30.85%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.66 EPS. On average, equities 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 will be paid on Thursday, December 19th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 3rd will be given a $0.70 dividend. This is a positive change from Autoliv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.68. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. Autoliv’s payout ratio is presently 36.46%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of ALV. Quarry LP lifted its stake in Autoliv by 133.5% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 362 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Autoliv in the third quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 14.0% in the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 954 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired a new position in shares of Autoliv in the second quarter valued at approximately $156,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new stake in Autoliv during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $209,000. 69.57% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Autoliv

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.