Lithia Motors, Inc. (LAD) To Go Ex-Dividend on November 7th

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, October 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be given a dividend of 0.55 per share on Friday, November 21st. This represents a c) annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 7th.

Lithia Motors has a payout ratio of 5.9% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Lithia Motors to earn $40.30 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 5.5%.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 5.5%

NYSE LAD opened at $325.36 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $322.64 and a 200-day moving average of $316.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.28. Lithia Motors has a 52 week low of $262.10 and a 52 week high of $405.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 1.21.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 256 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.05, for a total transaction of $75,020.80. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $403,236.80. The trade was a 15.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Visionary Horizons LLC acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the third quarter worth approximately $932,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at approximately $81,000. Hennessy Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,342,000. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al grew its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 29.2% in the third quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 6,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,959,000 after purchasing an additional 1,400 shares during the last quarter.

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.