Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.46 EPS

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.33 by $0.46, Zacks reports. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of LAD traded down $0.98 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $383.71. 28,941 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 405,464. Lithia Motors has a 52-week low of $243.00 and a 52-week high of $405.67. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $363.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $334.08. The firm has a market cap of $10.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.10, a P/E/G ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.24%.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $382.86, for a total transaction of $92,652.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,729 shares in the company, valued at $661,964.94. This trade represents a 12.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Tina Miller sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $392.72, for a total value of $392,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,085,466.16. The trade was a 8.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,611 shares of company stock worth $7,716,702 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LAD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Benchmark initiated coverage on Lithia Motors in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com raised Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Stephens lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $362.50.

About Lithia Motors

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.