Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $381.4444.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Lithia Motors from $305.00 to $306.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $326.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays lowered their price objective on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Lithia Motors from $348.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LAD traded up $2.44 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $314.43. The company had a trading volume of 158,383 shares, compared to its average volume of 279,332. Lithia Motors has a 12 month low of $239.78 and a 12 month high of $360.55. The stock has a market cap of $7.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.04, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $292.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $294.66.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.06 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $9.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.49% and a net margin of 1.88%.The business’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $7.66 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Lithia Motors will post 34.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, May 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This is a boost from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is currently 8.01%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total transaction of $83,329.29. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $213,233.20. This trade represents a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 245 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.64, for a total value of $72,186.80. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $543,905.44. This represents a 11.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 782 shares of company stock valued at $229,572 over the last three months. 1.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lithia Motors

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in Lithia Motors by 1,062.8% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 11,070 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,679,000 after buying an additional 10,118 shares during the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth approximately $58,409,000. Tabor Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors during the third quarter worth approximately $1,722,000. Bridges Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 284,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,490,000 after acquiring an additional 21,168 shares during the period. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 12.9% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 142,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,959,000 after acquiring an additional 16,226 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company’s core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.