Centiva Capital LP Has $1.95 Million Stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Centiva Capital LP grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 79.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,454 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,411 shares during the quarter. Centiva Capital LP's holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $1,949,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 69.9% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the company's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,420.0% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 152 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on LAD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $385.00 to $328.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Citigroup raised Lithia Motors from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $415.00 to $375.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. StockNews.com raised Lithia Motors from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $361.20.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 0.4 %

Lithia Motors stock opened at $297.32 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $297.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $340.04. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.04 and a twelve month high of $405.68. The company has a market capitalization of $7.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.02, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22.

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

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 337 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.94, for a total transaction of $99,731.78. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $482,974.08. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,665 shares of the company's stock, valued at $645,786.90. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,583 shares of company stock valued at $533,455. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company's stock.

Lithia Motors 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.

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