Brokerages Set Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Target Price at $365.91

Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the eleven brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $365.91.

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on LAD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Lithia Motors from $420.00 to $360.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at $645,786.90. This trade represents a 16.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 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 transaction, the director now directly 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,246 shares of company stock worth $433,724. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LAD. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,194,539 shares of the company’s stock valued at $426,968,000 after acquiring an additional 27,035 shares during the last quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP now owns 510,388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $182,428,000 after purchasing an additional 11,674 shares during the last quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 137.8% in the fourth quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 460,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $164,524,000 after purchasing an additional 266,715 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth $152,752,000. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 362,022 shares of the company’s stock worth $129,398,000 after buying an additional 55,142 shares during the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 0.0 %

Lithia Motors stock opened at $290.90 on Friday. Lithia Motors has a one year low of $243.00 and a one year high of $405.68. The stock has a market cap of $7.65 billion, a PE ratio of 9.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 1.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $319.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $341.91.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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, research analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

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.