14,298 Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD Shares Sold by ProShare Advisors LLC

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors reduced its Lithia Motors stake by 15.1% in the third quarter, selling 14,298 shares and retaining 80,440 shares valued at approximately $23.5 million.
• Lithia Motors exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, reporting $10.34 in EPS and $9.95 billion in revenue, with revenue up 2.8% year over year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.75 per share, or $3.00 annually, while analysts maintained a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $393.80.

ProShare Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 15.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 80,440 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,298 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned about 0.37% of Lithia Motors worth $23,475,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Addison Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Lithia Motors during the second quarter worth $30,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,311.1% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 127 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 68.0% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 173 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 32.1% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 173 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Stacy Congdon sold 75 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.73, for a total value of $27,804.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $852,679. This trade represents a 3.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $309.62 on Tuesday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $239.78 and a fifty-two week high of $439.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.91, a P/E/G ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.27. The company's 50 day moving average price is $321.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $307.77.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $10.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $9.70 by $0.64. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.06% and a return on equity of 12.05%. The firm had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.75 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $9.50 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 35.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Investors of record on Friday, November 6th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 6th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. This is an increase from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAD has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $490.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Lithia Motors from $358.00 to $310.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 5th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Barclays lowered their target price on Lithia Motors from $375.00 to $345.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $335.00 to $305.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $393.80.

About Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors, Inc is an automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Operating under the Lithia & Driveway name, the company sells new and used vehicles through a network of franchised dealerships and digital retail channels. Its dealerships represent a broad range of domestic, Asian and European automotive brands.

In addition to vehicle sales, Lithia provides related services including vehicle financing and insurance products, parts and maintenance, collision repair, and other after-sales support.

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