Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have issued a hold recommendation and six have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $326.00.

LAD has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com downgraded Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Guggenheim upgraded Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $338.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $266.00 to $302.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $315.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $360.00 price objective on the stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 11,938 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.86, for a total value of $3,472,286.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 46,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,417,080.94. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total value of $2,973,697.61. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 35,352 shares in the company, valued at $9,754,677.36. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 11,938 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.86, for a total value of $3,472,286.68. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 46,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,417,080.94. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 23,021 shares of company stock worth $6,534,617. Corporate insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Lithia Motors by 83.6% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 80.2% in the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 191 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 12,500.0% during the second quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in Lithia Motors in the second quarter valued at approximately $80,000.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:LAD opened at $299.70 on Monday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $279.90 and a 200-day moving average of $270.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 1.19. Lithia Motors has a twelve month low of $231.36 and a twelve month high of $331.96. The firm has a market cap of $8.21 billion, a PE ratio of 8.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.26 and a beta of 1.64.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $7.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.09 by $0.78. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 13.84%. The firm had revenue of $9.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $10.91 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lithia Motors will post 28.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.26%.

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.