Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Price Target Raised to $405.00

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its price target lifted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $375.00 to $405.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Stephens increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $353.80.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE LAD traded down $0.69 on Tuesday, hitting $367.80. 25,557 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 257,675. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $309.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $280.34. The company has a market capitalization of $9.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58 and a beta of 1.63. Lithia Motors has a 52-week low of $243.00 and a 52-week high of $375.15. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.60 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $9.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The business’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $9.25 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Lithia Motors will post 28.99 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 7.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 11,938 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were 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 owns 46,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,417,080.94. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Lithia Motors news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 11,938 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were 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 owns 46,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,417,080.94. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.21, for a total value of $2,855,989.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 32,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,744,821.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 31,235 shares of company stock valued at $9,301,973. Corporate insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lithia Motors

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 14.7% during the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,700,893 shares of the company’s stock worth $429,390,000 after purchasing an additional 217,867 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 25.0% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,016,520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,621,000 after acquiring an additional 203,543 shares in the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 118.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,609,000 after acquiring an additional 87,362 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at about $26,071,000. Finally, River Road Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 27.5% in the third quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 365,184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,997,000 after acquiring an additional 78,784 shares in the last quarter.

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.