Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) Upgraded by StockNews.com to “Strong-Buy”

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued on Friday.

ALV has been the topic of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $126.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Autoliv from $117.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Berenberg Bank raised shares of Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $120.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 12th. Barclays raised their price objective on Autoliv from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price target on Autoliv from $115.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Autoliv currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.90.

Autoliv Stock Performance

Autoliv stock traded down $0.44 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $121.36. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 606,869 shares, compared to its average volume of 550,976. The company has a market cap of $9.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.93, a PEG ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.69. Autoliv has a 1-year low of $79.66 and a 1-year high of $125.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.10 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $118.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $108.81.

Insider Activity at Autoliv

In related news, VP Mikael Hagstrom sold 327 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.69, for a total transaction of $35,868.63. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $35,868.63. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Mikael Bratt sold 4,226 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.72, for a total value of $463,676.72. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 17,547 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,925,256.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Mikael Hagstrom sold 327 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.69, for a total value of $35,868.63. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 327 shares in the company, valued at $35,868.63. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,606 shares of company stock worth $835,205 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Autoliv in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $91,065,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in Autoliv by 169.8% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 759,239 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $83,661,000 after buying an additional 477,800 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in Autoliv by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,264,937 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $507,961,000 after buying an additional 459,147 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Autoliv by 183.6% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 487,586 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $47,042,000 after buying an additional 315,668 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in Autoliv by 41.0% in the fourth quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 958,304 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $105,596,000 after acquiring an additional 278,800 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.57% of the company’s stock.

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.