Boston Partners Has $14.18 Million Stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Key Points

• Boston Partners reduced its stake in Lithia Motors by 7.1%, selling 3,711 shares during the first quarter, leaving them with 48,716 shares valued at approximately $14.18 million.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Lithia Motors, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $379.00, reflecting a range of price target adjustments from various firms.
• The company recently reported earnings that exceeded analysts' expectations, posting $10.24 earnings per share and a revenue of $9.58 billion for the last quarter.

Boston Partners trimmed its holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 7.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,716 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,711 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners owned 0.19% of Lithia Motors worth $14,183,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of LAD. Steadfast Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 137.8% in the 4th quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 460,298 shares of the company's stock valued at $164,524,000 after acquiring an additional 266,715 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,762,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,824,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 1,865.4% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 92,293 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,092,000 after buying an additional 87,597 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advent International L.P. lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 52.9% during the fourth quarter. Advent International L.P. now owns 217,151 shares of the company's stock valued at $77,616,000 after buying an additional 75,151 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LAD has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $430.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Lithia Motors from $364.00 to $317.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Citigroup upped their target price on Lithia Motors from $378.00 to $383.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim dropped their target price on Lithia Motors from $383.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Lithia Motors in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $340.00 target price on the stock. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $379.00.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE:LAD traded down $0.29 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $307.64. The stock had a trading volume of 174,627 shares, compared to its average volume of 338,323. The business's 50 day moving average is $320.95 and its 200 day moving average is $317.96. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $255.32 and a fifty-two week high of $405.67. The stock has a market cap of $7.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.13, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.29.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.24 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $9.78 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 13.21% and a net margin of 2.39%.The firm had revenue of $9.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.56 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is currently 6.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 256 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.05, for a total transaction of $75,020.80. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,376 shares in the company, valued at $403,236.80. This trade represents a 15.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

About Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors, Inc operates as an automotive retailer worldwide. It operates in two segments, Vehicle Operations and Financing Operations. The company's Vehicle Operations segment sells new and used vehicles; provides parts, repair, and maintenance services; vehicle finance; and insurance products. Its Financing Operations segment provides financing to customers buying and leasing retail vehicles.