Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Short Interest Update

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) saw a large decline in short interest during the month of July. As of July 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,360,000 shares, a decline of 7.1% from the June 30th total of 2,540,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 280,600 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 8.4 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. FourThought Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,609 shares of the company’s stock worth $530,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,150,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 83.6% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 13.3% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 554 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 3.6% during the fourth quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $631,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on LAD shares. Guggenheim downgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $280.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $290.00 to $248.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Craig Hallum decreased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $308.40.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 6.9 %

NYSE:LAD traded up $19.11 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $295.44. 679,770 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 245,903. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $256.28 and a 200 day moving average price of $273.60. The company has a market cap of $8.10 billion, a PE ratio of 8.73, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 1.63. Lithia Motors has a one year low of $231.36 and a one year high of $331.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.28.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc operates as an automotive retailer worldwide. It operates in two segments, Vehicle Operations and Financing Operations. The company's Vehicle Operations segment sells new and used vehicles; provides parts, repair, and maintenance services; vehicle finance; and insurance products.