7,900 Shares in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD Acquired by ING Groep NV

Key Points

• ING Groep NV opened a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter, buying 7,900 shares valued at about $2.63 million.
• Lithia Motors also saw insider selling, with directors Shauna McIntyre and Richard J. Bailey, Jr. both selling shares in May; insiders now own about 1.08% of the company.
• The company recently authorized a $500 million share buyback and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.57 per share, while analysts currently maintain a Moderate Buy consensus rating.

ING Groep NV acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 7,900 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,625,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 111.4% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the company's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. eCIO Inc. purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Flagship Harbor Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth approximately $50,000.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 245 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.64, for a total transaction of $72,186.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,846 shares of the company's stock, valued at $543,905.44. This trade represents a 11.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total value of $83,329.29. Following the sale, the director directly owned 760 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $213,233.20. This trade represents a 28.10% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 617 shares of company stock valued at $174,966. 1.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

LAD stock opened at $304.28 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $277.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $298.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The stock has a market cap of $6.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.26. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52-week low of $239.78 and a 52-week high of $360.55.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.06 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $9.27 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.22 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.49% and a net margin of 1.88%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $7.66 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, May 26th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. Lithia Motors's payout ratio is 8.01%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on LAD shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Zacks Research upgraded Lithia Motors from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Barclays reduced their price objective on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Lithia Motors in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a "buy" rating and a $348.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Lithia Motors from $326.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $368.11.

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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