Bank of New York Mellon Corp Purchases 21,806 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon increased its stake in Lithia Motors by 10.5% in the fourth quarter, adding 21,806 shares and bringing its total holdings to 229,048 shares worth about $76.1 million.
• Lithia Motors reported better-than-expected first-quarter earnings, posting $7.34 EPS on $9.27 billion in revenue, both slightly ahead of analyst estimates.
• The company’s board approved a $500 million stock buyback and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.57 per share, signaling confidence in its valuation and cash generation.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 10.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 229,048 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 21,806 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned approximately 0.94% of Lithia Motors worth $76,119,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 9.2% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 403 shares of the company's stock worth $134,000 after buying an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 842 shares of the company's stock worth $285,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 111.4% in the 4th 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. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 7,992 shares of the company's stock worth $2,525,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,071 shares of the company's stock worth $654,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 4.2%

NYSE LAD opened at $304.28 on Wednesday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $277.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $298.56. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a one year low of $239.78 and a one year high of $360.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market cap of $6.94 billion, a PE ratio of 10.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.26.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $7.66 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 245 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $543,905.44. The trade was a 11.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total transaction 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 ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 617 shares of company stock worth $174,966 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.08% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on LAD shares. UBS Group started coverage on Lithia Motors in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a "buy" rating and a $348.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Citigroup increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $326.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price target on Lithia Motors from $335.00 to $320.00 in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $368.11.

Lithia Motors Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding LAD? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.