Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eleven have assigned a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $114.00.

A number of brokerages have issued reports on ALV. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Autoliv from $103.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Autoliv from $95.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. BNP Paribas Exane raised shares of Autoliv from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $123.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Autoliv from $97.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st.

Autoliv Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALV opened at $105.67 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $93.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.09, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.36. Autoliv has a one year low of $75.49 and a one year high of $119.74. 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 (NYSE:ALV) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The auto parts company reported $2.15 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.43. Autoliv had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 28.62%. The firm had revenue of $2.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.58 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Autoliv will post 9.51 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, June 4th that permits the company to buyback $2.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the auto parts company to buy up to 31.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Autoliv Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $0.85 per share. This is a boost from Autoliv’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $3.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. Autoliv’s payout ratio is 39.13%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of ALV. SouthState Corp bought a new position in shares of Autoliv in the first quarter worth about $25,000. AlphaQuest LLC grew its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 74.4% in the fourth quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 314 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 122.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 370 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Autoliv in the first quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Twin Tree Management LP bought a new position in shares of Autoliv in the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. Institutional investors own 69.57% of the company’s stock.

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.