BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Sells 9,500 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Key Points

• British Columbia Investment Management Corp reduced its stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. by 5.5%, selling 9,500 shares to own 164,000 shares valued at approximately $48.1 million.
• Multiple institutional investors have recently increased their positions in Lithia Motors, with CWM LLC significantly increasing its stake by 30.1% in the first quarter.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Lithia Motors, with target prices ranging from $317.00 to $500.00, and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp trimmed its holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 5.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 164,000 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,500 shares during the quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp owned 0.63% of Lithia Motors worth $48,141,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LAD. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors in the 1st quarter worth $59,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 63.7% in the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 203 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its position in Lithia Motors by 30.1% during the first 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. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Lithia Motors by 50.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 252 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in Lithia Motors in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $143,000.

Lithia Motors Trading Up 2.8%

NYSE:LAD traded up $9.36 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $340.36. 476,209 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 339,217. The company has a quick ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 1.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $255.32 and a twelve month high of $405.67. The company has a market capitalization of $8.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.30. The company's 50 day moving average is $319.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $316.03.

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

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were paid a $0.55 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is 6.52%.

Lithia Motors declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, August 26th that permits the company to repurchase $750.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LAD. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $430.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $364.00 to $317.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $335.00 to $315.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim decreased their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $383.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $378.00 to $383.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $379.00.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 256 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,376 shares of the company's stock, valued at $403,236.80. The trade was a 15.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.87% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.