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

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) hit a new 52-week high during 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. The stock had previously closed at $344.08.

LAD has been the topic of a number of other reports. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com lowered Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Stephens lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $353.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC increased its holdings 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 worth $429,390,000 after purchasing an additional 217,867 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position 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 during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board raised its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 7.2% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 727,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,981,000 after acquiring an additional 48,938 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 27.5% in the third quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 365,184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,997,000 after purchasing an additional 78,784 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in shares of 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 worth $65,756,000 after acquiring an additional 5,390 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $9.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.60 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $308.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $279.73.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $9.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $9.25 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 28.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.