Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Downgraded to “Sell” Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Lithia Motors (NYSE:LADFree Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research note issued to investors on Thursday.

Several other analysts have also weighed in on LAD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $375.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $357.60.

Get Our Latest Research Report on LAD

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $390.86 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The company has a market cap of $10.41 billion, a PE ratio of 13.34 and a beta of 1.63. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $330.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $289.79. Lithia Motors has a fifty-two week low of $243.00 and a fifty-two week high of $391.14.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LADGet Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.60 by $0.61. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The business had revenue of $9.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $9.25 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Lithia Motors will post 29.09 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is currently 7.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total value of $6,127,965.12. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 207,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,408,369.28. The trade was a 7.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now owns 1,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $661,964.94. The trade was a 12.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,698 shares of company stock valued at $13,309,244 in the last 90 days. 1.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Versor Investments LP lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 7.0% during the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 856 shares of the company’s stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $607,000. Comerica Bank boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 89.0% in the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 29,473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,867,000 after purchasing an additional 13,875 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 22.9% in the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 70,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,774,000 after purchasing an additional 13,126 shares during the period. Finally, Bridges Investment Management Inc. grew 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 buying an additional 87,362 shares in the last quarter.

About Lithia Motors

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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.

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