Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Autoliv, Inc. (NYSE:ALV) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,790,000 shares, a drop of 15.2% from the August 15th total of 3,290,000 shares. Approximately 3.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 854,800 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.3 days.

Autoliv Trading Down 1.4 %

NYSE ALV traded down $1.35 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $95.69. 385,198 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 661,333. The firm has a market cap of $7.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.14, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.60. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $99.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $111.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Autoliv has a 1-year low of $89.37 and a 1-year high of $129.38.

Autoliv (NYSE:ALV) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 19th. The auto parts company reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.57). Autoliv had a return on equity of 30.05% and a net margin of 5.91%. The company had revenue of $2.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.93 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Autoliv will post 9.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Autoliv Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 23rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 4th will be paid a $0.68 dividend. This represents a $2.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 4th. Autoliv’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.43%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Autoliv

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. KRS Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. KRS Capital Management LLC now owns 2,788 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System raised its holdings in Autoliv by 0.6% during the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 18,100 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,180,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Autoliv by 62.7% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 262 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 9,490 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,046,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Autoliv by 14.0% during the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 954 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $102,000 after buying an additional 117 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.57% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on ALV shares. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Autoliv from $150.00 to $140.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $116.00 price objective on shares of Autoliv in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Autoliv in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. UBS Group upgraded Autoliv from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the company from $102.00 to $141.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, HSBC assumed coverage on Autoliv in a research report on Monday, July 15th. They set a “buy” rating and a $134.00 price objective on the stock. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Autoliv currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $124.79.

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.