Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Coverage Initiated at Stephens

Analysts at Stephens initiated coverage on shares of Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) in a research report issued on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm set an “overweight” rating and a $360.00 price target on the stock. Stephens’ target price points to a potential upside of 28.76% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also commented on LAD. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $266.00 to $302.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Guggenheim raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $338.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $326.00.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of LAD opened at $279.58 on Thursday. Lithia Motors has a fifty-two week low of $231.36 and a fifty-two week high of $331.96. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $275.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $271.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.66 billion, a PE ratio of 8.25, a PEG ratio of 0.26 and a beta of 1.64.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth approximately $123,976,000. Cadian Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter valued at $105,370,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,700,893 shares of the company’s stock valued at $429,390,000 after purchasing an additional 217,867 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 25.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,016,520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,621,000 after acquiring an additional 203,543 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 118.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,609,000 after acquiring an additional 87,362 shares in the last quarter.

About Lithia Motors

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.