3,101 Shares in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD Bought by Deutsche Bank AG

Key Points

• Deutsche Bank initiated a position in Lithia Motors during the second quarter, purchasing 3,101 shares valued at approximately $901,000. Several other institutional investors, including Goldman Sachs and UBS Asset Management, also increased their holdings.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with six Buy ratings and five Holds producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $436.33.
• Lithia Motors exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, raised its quarterly dividend to $0.70 per share, and authorized a $500 million share-repurchase program covering up to 7.9% of outstanding shares.

Deutsche Bank AG purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 3,101 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $901,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,474 shares of the company's stock worth $2,487,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in Lithia Motors by 67.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 113,346 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,272,000 after buying an additional 45,716 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 93,170 shares of the company's stock worth $27,349,000 after buying an additional 13,407 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 16.2% in the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,430 shares of the company's stock worth $821,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in Lithia Motors in the second quarter worth approximately $651,000.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on LAD shares. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $490.00 target price on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Benchmark upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $436.33.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 1.0%

LAD stock opened at $366.72 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.06 billion, a PE ratio of 12.16, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $239.78 and a twelve month high of $439.49. The stock's 50 day moving average is $345.73 and its 200-day moving average is $301.93.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.73 by $1.30. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.16% and a net margin of 1.88%.The business had revenue of $9.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $10.24 earnings per share. Lithia Motors's revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. This is a boost from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is presently 9.29%.

Lithia Motors declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 26th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 165 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.64, for a total value of $50,430.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,681 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $513,780.84. This represents a 8.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.08% of the company's stock.

Lithia Motors Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company's core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.

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