Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Sees Large Volume Increase on Analyst Upgrade

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $343.00 to $346.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Approximately 278,574 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 11% from the previous session’s volume of 251,988 shares.The stock last traded at $358.31 and had previously closed at $362.83.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Stephens raised their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Lithia Motors from $375.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley raised Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $357.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $382.86, for a total transaction of $92,652.12. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $661,964.94. This represents a 12.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 6,742 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total value of $2,696,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 174,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,778,000. This represents a 3.72 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 47,290 shares of company stock worth $17,959,596. Insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth $248,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,679,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,073.7% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,770 shares of the company’s stock valued at $990,000 after purchasing an additional 2,534 shares during the last quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 9,100 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,253,000 after purchasing an additional 905 shares during the period. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth about $202,000.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $9.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.99, a P/E/G ratio of 4.77 and a beta of 1.67. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $368.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $319.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.60 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $9.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%. Lithia Motors’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $9.25 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is 7.24%.

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.