Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Sets New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday after JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on the stock from $375.00 to $405.00. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Lithia Motors traded as high as $348.09 and last traded at $344.22, with a volume of 28126 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $344.08.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. StockNews.com lowered Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $225.00 to $310.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America raised their target price 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $353.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.21, for a total transaction of $2,855,989.20. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 32,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,744,821.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Lithia Motors news, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.21, for a total transaction of $2,855,989.20. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 32,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,744,821.34. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total value of $2,973,697.61. Following the transaction, the director now owns 35,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,754,677.36. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,235 shares of company stock valued at $9,301,973 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 14.7% during the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,700,893 shares of the company’s stock worth $429,390,000 after purchasing an additional 217,867 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 25.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,016,520 shares of the company’s stock worth $256,621,000 after purchasing an additional 203,543 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in Lithia Motors by 7.2% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 727,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,981,000 after buying an additional 48,938 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 27.5% during the third quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 365,184 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,997,000 after purchasing an additional 78,784 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 2.1% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 260,470 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,756,000 after acquiring an additional 5,390 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 0.1 %

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $305.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $278.46. The company has a market capitalization of $9.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.72 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.27.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.60 by $0.61. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The business had revenue of $9.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $9.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 28.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is currently 7.24%.

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. Its Financing Operations segment provides financing to customers buying and leasing retail vehicles.