Eventide Asset Management LLC Sells 24,801 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Eventide Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 13.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 156,374 shares of the company's stock after selling 24,801 shares during the quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC owned 0.64% of Lithia Motors worth $52,000,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC increased its stake in Lithia Motors by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the company's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio increased its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 245 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.64, for a total transaction of $72,186.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,846 shares in the company, valued at $543,905.44. This trade represents a 11.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of the firm'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 value of $83,329.29. Following the transaction, the director owned 760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $213,233.20. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 707 shares of company stock worth $205,947. 1.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $313.47 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.26. The business's 50-day moving average price is $281.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $298.85. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $239.78 and a 12 month high of $360.55.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.06 by $0.28. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.49% and a net margin of 1.88%.The firm had revenue of $9.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $7.66 EPS. The company's revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, May 26th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is 8.01%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays decreased their target price on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Zacks Research upgraded Lithia Motors from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Lithia Motors from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Lithia Motors in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They set a "buy" rating and a $348.00 price objective on the stock. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $368.11.

About Lithia Motors

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.

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