Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Acquires 55,142 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 18.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 362,022 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 55,142 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $129,398,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Egerton Capital UK LLP bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $113,250,000. Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at $91,190,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth $46,505,000. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,960.2% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 126,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,311,000 after acquiring an additional 120,749 shares during the period. Finally, HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 5,233.4% in the 3rd quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 107,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,187,000 after purchasing an additional 105,611 shares in the last quarter.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Guggenheim increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their target price on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $371.36.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In related news, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total value of $154,864.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,605 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,049.40. This trade represents a 13.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total transaction of $72,128.32. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $377,219.48. This represents a 16.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,246 shares of company stock worth $433,724 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Lithia Motors stock opened at $306.60 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $8.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.33, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.00 and a 12-month high of $405.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $346.66 and its 200 day simple moving average is $341.56.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 7.14%.

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.