Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. Buys 191 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. grew its stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 11.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 1,817 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 191 shares during the quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $649,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Egerton Capital UK LLP bought a new stake in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at about $113,250,000. Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at about $91,190,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter worth approximately $46,505,000. Verition Fund Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,960.2% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 126,909 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,311,000 after acquiring an additional 120,749 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 5,233.4% during the third quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 107,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,187,000 after acquiring an additional 105,611 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $371.36.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 4.6 %

NYSE:LAD opened at $320.45 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $344.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $342.37. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $243.00 and a 1-year high of $405.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.80, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 research analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.66%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total transaction of $72,128.32. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,297 shares in the company, valued at $377,219.48. This trade represents a 16.05 % 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, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 270 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.80, for a total value of $80,676.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $362,444.40. The trade was a 18.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,246 shares of company stock valued at $433,724 in the last 90 days. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.