Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) Trading Down 4% – What’s Next?

Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) shares fell 4% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $90.04 and last traded at $91.07. 351,567 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 53% from the average session volume of 753,823 shares. The stock had previously closed at $94.88.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ALV shares. HSBC lowered Autoliv from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $109.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen started coverage on shares of Autoliv in a report on Friday, March 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $116.00 price objective for the company. Daiwa America raised shares of Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Daiwa Capital Markets raised shares of Autoliv from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $109.00 price target for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Autoliv from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Nine investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $117.14.

Autoliv Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $95.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $95.58. The firm has a market cap of $6.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The auto parts company reported $3.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.21. Autoliv had a net margin of 6.21% and a return on equity of 28.62%. On average, analysts anticipate that Autoliv, Inc. will post 9.51 EPS for the current year.

Autoliv Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 34.70%.

Insider Transactions at Autoliv

In other Autoliv news, CEO Mikael Bratt sold 5,760 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.90, for a total value of $569,664.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 23,307 shares in the company, valued at $2,305,062.30. This represents a 19.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Fredrik Westin sold 1,803 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.19, for a total transaction of $178,839.57. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 7,261 shares in the company, valued at approximately $720,218.59. This represents a 19.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,253 shares of company stock valued at $915,534 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Autoliv

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in Autoliv by 139.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 273 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC acquired a new position in Autoliv in the third quarter worth approximately $45,000. Twin Tree Management LP bought a new position in Autoliv during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Autoliv in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. 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.