Analysts Set Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Target Price at $353.80

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $353.80.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on LAD shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Guggenheim increased their target price on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Stephens increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of LAD opened at $372.58 on Tuesday. Lithia Motors has a fifty-two week low of $243.00 and a fifty-two week high of $388.36. The company’s fifty day moving average is $317.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $284.37. The firm has a market cap of $9.92 billion, a PE ratio of 12.72 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.60 by $0.61. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The firm had revenue of $9.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.25 earnings per share. Lithia Motors’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Lithia Motors will post 29.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is currently 7.24%.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 11,938 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.86, for a total transaction of $3,472,286.68. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 46,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,417,080.94. This represents a 20.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total transaction of $6,127,965.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 207,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,408,369.28. This trade represents a 7.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 50,394 shares of company stock valued at $16,688,879. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 83.6% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the 3rd quarter valued at about $35,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 12,500.0% in the 2nd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the second quarter worth approximately $80,000.

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.