Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD Shares Bought by Empowered Funds LLC

Key Points

• Empowered Funds LLC significantly increased its stake in Lithia Motors, acquiring an additional 25,480 shares to bring total holdings to approximately $7.68 million.
• Lithia Motors recently reported an EPS of $10.24 for the quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate by $0.46 and had a revenue of $9.58 billion.
• The company announced a $750 million stock buyback plan and a quarterly dividend of $0.55, indicating confidence in its stock valuation.

Empowered Funds LLC grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 3,682.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,172 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 25,480 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC owned about 0.10% of Lithia Motors worth $7,683,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the 1st quarter worth $59,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 63.7% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 203 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 50.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 252 shares of the company's stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 1st quarter valued at about $136,000.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 256 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.05, for a total transaction of $75,020.80. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $403,236.80. The trade was a 15.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on LAD. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $364.00 to $317.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $378.00 to $383.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Guggenheim decreased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $383.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 11th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $500.00 to $385.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $335.00 to $315.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $370.45.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE:LAD traded down $1.94 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $328.37. The stock had a trading volume of 26,382 shares, compared to its average volume of 333,088. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.74, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $319.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $313.22. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $262.10 and a 52 week high of $405.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24.

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

Lithia Motors announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, August 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $750.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. Lithia Motors's payout ratio is 6.52%.

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.