Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Shares Bought by Natixis Advisors LLC

Natixis Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 13.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 92,922 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,846 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $33,213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 259,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,560,000 after acquiring an additional 37,677 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 208,253 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,436,000 after acquiring an additional 2,108 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 497.7% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,676 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,314,000 after acquiring an additional 3,061 shares during the period. Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $91,190,000. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $731,000.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total value of $154,864.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,605 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,001,049.40. This represents a 13.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total value of $72,128.32. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $377,219.48. This represents a 16.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,246 shares of company stock valued at $433,724 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on LAD shares. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $371.36.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 3.4 %

Shares of NYSE LAD opened at $295.39 on Monday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.00 and a 52-week high of $405.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $349.24 and a 200-day moving average of $341.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.76 billion, a PE ratio of 9.95, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. On average, analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid 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 0.72%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

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.