First Hawaiian Bank Sells 49 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

First Hawaiian Bank decreased its holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 3.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,218 shares of the company’s stock after selling 49 shares during the quarter. First Hawaiian Bank’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $366,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LAD. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 25.9% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 1,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $414,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares during the period. UBS Group AG lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,288.3% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 31,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,410,000 after buying an additional 29,567 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $918,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors during the third quarter valued at $546,000. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. bought a new position in Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at about $637,000.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 138 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 2,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $566,847.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of LAD opened at $248.70 on Friday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12-month low of $231.36 and a 12-month high of $331.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. The company has a market capitalization of $6.82 billion, a PE ratio of 7.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.62. The business’s 50 day moving average is $259.42 and its 200 day moving average is $282.71.

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

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.85%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LAD has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $270.00 to $280.00 in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Craig Hallum decreased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Lithia Motors from $290.00 to $248.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Guggenheim lowered Lithia Motors from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $319.45.

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.