766 Shares in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Bought by BTC Capital Management Inc.

BTC Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 766 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $230,000.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Denali Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 5,050.0% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 80.2% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 191 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors in the 1st quarter worth $114,000.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 138 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.42, for a total transaction of $35,109.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 2,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $566,847.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE LAD opened at $248.70 on Friday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $231.36 and a 52 week high of $331.96. The firm has a market cap of $6.82 billion, a PE ratio of 7.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.62. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $259.42 and its 200-day simple moving average is $282.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $6.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.85 by ($1.74). The firm had revenue of $8.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.58 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.87% and a return on equity of 15.62%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $8.44 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 28.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th were given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.85%. This is an increase from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is currently 6.26%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on LAD. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $270.00 to $280.00 in a report on Monday, June 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Lithia Motors from $290.00 to $248.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Guggenheim downgraded Lithia Motors from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 17th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $319.45.

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.