Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD Shares Acquired by Westwood Holdings Group Inc.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 84,587 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,204 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned 0.33% of Lithia Motors worth $28,575,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of LAD. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 114.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 88 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 1,383.3% in the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 89 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 106.2% in the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. eCIO Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 1st quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 29.1% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares in the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 3.4%

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $344.65 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $8.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.98, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $311.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $319.77. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $262.10 and a 1-year high of $405.14.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The company reported $9.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.53 by $0.97. The business had revenue of $9.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.38 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 13.42%. The business’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $8.21 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is currently 6.37%.

Lithia Motors declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, August 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $750.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on LAD shares. Bank of America reduced their target price on Lithia Motors from $500.00 to $385.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Lithia Motors from $440.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $385.00 to $399.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Barclays started coverage on Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $410.00 price objective on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $389.10.

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.