Bridges Investment Management Inc. Purchases 14,179 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Key Points

• Bridges Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Lithia Motors, purchasing an additional 14,179 shares, bringing its total to 255,599 shares, which represent 1.2% of its portfolio.
• Several major brokerages have adjusted their price targets for Lithia Motors, with JPMorgan raising it to $350 and Citigroup to $383, while Bank of America lowered theirs to $385.
• Lithia Motors recently announced a $750 million share buyback plan and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.55 per share, indicating potential confidence in its financial health.

Bridges Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 5.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 255,599 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 14,179 shares during the quarter. Lithia Motors accounts for 1.2% of Bridges Investment Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Bridges Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.98% of Lithia Motors worth $86,346,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 2,421 shares of the company's stock worth $711,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 7,880 shares of the company's stock worth $2,662,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 30.1% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 212 shares of the company's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 29.1% during the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 262 shares of the company's stock worth $89,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 4.6% during the 2nd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 1,434 shares of the company's stock worth $485,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 256 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.05, for a total value of $75,020.80. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $403,236.80. This represents a 15.69% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on LAD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $378.00 to $383.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $500.00 to $385.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Lithia Motors from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $381.00.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 1.4%

Lithia Motors stock opened at $307.15 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.88 billion, a PE ratio of 9.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.28. The company's 50-day moving average is $321.21 and its 200-day moving average is $315.30. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $262.10 and a fifty-two week high of $405.67. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.24 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $9.78 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 13.21%. The business had revenue of $9.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.56 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Tuesday, August 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $750.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date was 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 6.52%.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

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.

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