Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Director Sells $23,625.00 in Stock

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 75 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $315.00, for a total value of $23,625.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 2,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $748,125. This represents a 3.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 4.8%

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $292.60 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market cap of $6.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.26. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $239.78 and a fifty-two week high of $360.55. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $284.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $298.49.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.06 by $0.28. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.49% and a net margin of 1.88%.The company had revenue of $9.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $7.66 earnings per share. Lithia Motors’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, May 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This is an increase from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.8%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is presently 8.01%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on LAD shares. UBS Group started coverage on Lithia Motors in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $348.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America decreased their target price on Lithia Motors from $335.00 to $320.00 in a research note on Monday, April 13th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Lithia Motors from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $368.11.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Western Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the first quarter worth approximately $67,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.9% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 72,855 shares of the company’s stock worth $18,193,000 after buying an additional 1,373 shares during the period. Talon Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the first quarter worth approximately $572,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 17.3% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 28,338 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,077,000 after buying an additional 4,176 shares during the period. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.7% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 86,520 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,604,000 after buying an additional 1,414 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company’s core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.