Alyeska Investment Group L.P. Buys 24,588 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Alyeska Investment Group L.P. boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 21.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 138,688 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 24,588 shares during the quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. owned approximately 0.52% of Lithia Motors worth $49,571,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in LAD. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,194,539 shares of the company's stock worth $426,968,000 after acquiring an additional 27,035 shares during the period. Lyrical Asset Management LP boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP now owns 510,388 shares of the company's stock valued at $182,428,000 after purchasing an additional 11,674 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter valued at $152,752,000. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in Lithia Motors by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 362,022 shares of the company's stock worth $129,398,000 after buying an additional 55,142 shares during the period. Finally, Egerton Capital UK LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth $113,250,000.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE LAD traded down $1.03 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $296.05. 198,376 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 314,489. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $296.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $339.74. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a one year low of $243.04 and a one year high of $405.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 1.19. The company has a market cap of $7.71 billion, a PE ratio of 9.97, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.48.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $7.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.77 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.19 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.11 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This is a boost from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 9th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.74%. Lithia Motors's payout ratio is presently 6.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Guggenheim cut their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $417.00 to $356.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $415.00 to $375.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $361.20.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In related news, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total value of $154,864.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 2,605 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,001,049.40. This represents a 13.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 337 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.94, for a total value of $99,731.78. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at $482,974.08. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,583 shares of company stock worth $533,455 in the last quarter. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.