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

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday morning.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. HSBC assumed coverage on shares of Autoliv in a report on Monday, July 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $134.00 price target for the company. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Autoliv to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “buy” rating and issued a $116.00 price target on shares of Autoliv in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on Autoliv from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Autoliv from $102.00 to $101.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $124.14.

Autoliv Stock Performance

Shares of ALV opened at $95.02 on Monday. Autoliv has a 52-week low of $89.37 and a 52-week high of $129.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.73 billion, a PE ratio of 14.82, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.60. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $96.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $107.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last posted 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 company had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.52 billion. Autoliv had a net margin of 5.91% and a return on equity of 30.05%. Autoliv’s revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.66 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Autoliv will post 8.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 23rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th were issued a dividend of $0.68 per share. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, September 4th. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.43%.

Institutional Trading of Autoliv

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Custom Index Systems LLC increased its position in Autoliv by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Custom Index Systems LLC now owns 3,282 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $306,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in Autoliv by 7.2% in the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 8,561 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $799,000 after buying an additional 575 shares during the last quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. raised its position in Autoliv by 16.1% during the third quarter. Values First Advisors Inc. now owns 2,824 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $264,000 after acquiring an additional 392 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Autoliv by 203.8% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 106,563 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $9,950,000 after acquiring an additional 71,487 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Autoliv by 82.6% in the third quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,031 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $376,000 after acquiring an additional 1,824 shares in the last quarter. 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.