American Century Companies Inc. Acquires New Position in Lithium Americas Corp. $LAC

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. acquired 102,558 shares of Lithium Americas Corp. (NYSE:LAC), valued at approximately $277,000, during the first quarter.
• Several large investors, including Raymond James Financial and Ameriprise Financial, are actively adjusting their stakes in Lithium Americas, indicating heightened interest in the company.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on the stock, with an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $4.15.

American Century Companies Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Lithium Americas Corp. (NYSE:LAC - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 102,558 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $277,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Lithium Americas during the 1st quarter worth about $504,000. Koss Olinger Consulting LLC lifted its holdings in Lithium Americas by 67.1% during the 1st quarter. Koss Olinger Consulting LLC now owns 311,209 shares of the company's stock worth $843,000 after purchasing an additional 124,970 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Lithium Americas during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in Lithium Americas by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 95,359 shares of the company's stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 7,658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ping Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Lithium Americas during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on LAC shares. National Bankshares cut Lithium Americas from an "outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. National Bank Financial cut Lithium Americas from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Cormark raised Lithium Americas to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $5.00 price target on shares of Lithium Americas in a report on Friday, May 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $4.15.

Lithium Americas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LAC traded up $0.05 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $2.85. 4,330,689 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,799,735. The company has a market capitalization of $688.73 million, a P/E ratio of -12.39 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a quick ratio of 9.88, a current ratio of 9.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33. Lithium Americas Corp. has a 52-week low of $2.28 and a 52-week high of $5.20. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $2.87 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $2.81.

Lithium Americas (NYSE:LAC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 14th. The company reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.04) by ($0.02). Equities research analysts forecast that Lithium Americas Corp. will post -0.12 EPS for the current year.

Lithium Americas Company Profile

Lithium Americas Corp. engages in the exploration and development of lithium properties in the United States and Canada. It holds a 100% interest in the Thacker Pass project located in northern Nevada, as well as investments in exploration properties in the United States and Canada. Lithium Americas Corp.