Vontobel Holding Ltd. Makes New $327,000 Investment in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Vontobel Holding Ltd. acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,030 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $327,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Lithia Motors by 53.7% in the 3rd quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,950 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,208,000 after buying an additional 2,427 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 1,657 shares of the company’s stock valued at $526,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 3.5% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 4,051 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,287,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Silverlake Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Lithia Motors during the third quarter worth $210,000. Finally, Sendero Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sendero Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,034 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,140,000 after purchasing an additional 2,233 shares during the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Lithia Motors stock opened at $304.71 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $297.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $273.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 1.19. The firm has a market cap of $8.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.00, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.64. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $231.36 and a 52 week high of $331.96.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $7.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.09 by $0.78. The company had revenue of $9.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.29 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 13.84%. Lithia Motors’s quarterly revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $10.91 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 28.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 6.26%.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.65, for a total transaction of $88,632.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $556,707.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Lithia Motors news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 11,938 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.86, for a total transaction of $3,472,286.68. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 46,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,417,080.94. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.65, for a total value of $88,632.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $556,707.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 23,021 shares of company stock worth $6,534,617 in the last quarter. 1.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAD has been the topic of several research reports. StockNews.com lowered Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Guggenheim raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $338.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $337.70.

Lithia Motors 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.