Lithium Americas (NYSE:LAC) Trading Up 3.2% – Still a Buy?

Lithium Americas Corp. (NYSE:LAC) shares rose 3.2% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $5.11 and last traded at $5.0260. Approximately 11,434,899 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 30% from the average daily volume of 16,254,129 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.87.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on LAC shares. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Lithium Americas from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Wedbush lifted their price target on shares of Lithium Americas from $5.00 to $8.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Lithium Americas in a report on Friday, October 31st. TD Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $5.00 target price on shares of Lithium Americas in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Lithium Americas from $3.50 to $5.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 2nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lithium Americas currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.33.

Lithium Americas Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 3.77, a quick ratio of 3.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The company’s 50-day moving average is $5.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.53 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.79 and a beta of 1.42.

Lithium Americas (NYSE:LAC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 13th. The company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.03. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithium Americas Corp. will post -0.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Edward Grandy sold 6,183 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.50, for a total value of $27,823.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 135,466 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $609,597. This represents a 4.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Alexi Illya Zawadzki sold 353,914 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $9.48, for a total value of $3,355,104.72. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 40,005 shares in the company, valued at $379,247.40. This trade represents a 89.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 364,860 shares of company stock valued at $3,404,362 in the last quarter. 1.11% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithium Americas

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Lithium Americas in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lithium Americas by 86.1% in the 2nd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 9,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 4,580 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Lithium Americas during the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Walleye Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Lithium Americas during the second quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, IHT Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Lithium Americas during the second quarter worth approximately $28,000.

Lithium Americas Company Profile

Lithium Americas Corp. engages in the exploration and development of lithium properties in the United States and Canada. It holds a 100% interest in the Thacker Pass project located in northern Nevada, as well as investments in exploration properties in the United States and Canada. Lithium Americas Corp.