Raymond James Financial Inc. Acquires New Holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 37,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,306,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. KBC Group NV increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 14.1% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 776 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 3rd quarter worth $246,000. Commerce Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 3rd quarter valued at $204,000. Moran Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 22,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,297,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC grew its position in Lithia Motors by 31.4% in the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 28,248 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,973,000 after acquiring an additional 6,755 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other news, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total value of $154,864.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 2,605 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,049.40. This trade represents a 13.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total value of $72,128.32. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,297 shares in the company, valued at $377,219.48. This represents a 16.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,246 shares of company stock worth $433,724 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on LAD. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $371.36.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

LAD stock opened at $306.60 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.33, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $346.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $341.56. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.00 and a 12-month high of $405.68.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.43% and a net margin of 2.21%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 7.14%.

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