Principal Financial Group Inc. Cuts Holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 11.9% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 91,269 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,360 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $23,041,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors in the second quarter valued at approximately $294,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 21.5% in the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 5,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,436,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008 shares in the last quarter. Iridian Asset Management LLC CT boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 6.1% in the second quarter. Iridian Asset Management LLC CT now owns 73,040 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,439,000 after acquiring an additional 4,203 shares in the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 12,500.0% in the second quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 2.1% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 260,470 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,756,000 after acquiring an additional 5,390 shares in the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 1.0 %

LAD stock opened at $301.08 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.89, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.63. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $271.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $271.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $231.36 and a 52 week high of $331.96.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $7.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.09 by $0.78. The business had revenue of $9.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.29 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 13.84%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $10.91 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 28.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.26%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on LAD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $266.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Guggenheim upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $338.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $321.50.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.65, for a total transaction of $88,632.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $556,707.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 11,938 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.86, for a total transaction of $3,472,286.68. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 46,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,417,080.94. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.65, for a total transaction of $88,632.90. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $556,707.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lithia Motors 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.