Parkwood LLC Sells 3,666 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Key Points

• Parkwood LLC has reduced its stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. by 16.2%, now holding 18,921 shares worth approximately $5.55 million.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $10.24, exceeding estimates, with revenues reaching $9.58 billion, indicating strong financial performance.
• Lithia Motors has initiated a $750 million share buyback program, showing management's confidence in the stock's valuation.

Parkwood LLC lowered its stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 16.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,921 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,666 shares during the quarter. Parkwood LLC owned about 0.07% of Lithia Motors worth $5,554,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Steadfast Capital Management LP increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 137.8% during the fourth quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 460,298 shares of the company's stock valued at $164,524,000 after purchasing an additional 266,715 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,840.6% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 181,777 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,359,000 after purchasing an additional 172,410 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,762,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,824,000. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 87,597 shares in the last quarter.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 256 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $293.05, for a total value of $75,020.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,376 shares in the company, valued at $403,236.80. This trade represents a 15.69% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Lithia Motors from $364.00 to $317.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $430.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $340.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. They set a "buy" rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Lithia Motors from $378.00 to $383.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $380.91.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of LAD stock traded up $5.47 on Tuesday, reaching $345.04. The stock had a trading volume of 279,891 shares, compared to its average volume of 291,915. The stock has a market cap of $8.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.31. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1 year low of $255.32 and a 1 year high of $405.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 1.22. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $320.81 and a 200 day simple moving average of $313.69.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 return on equity of 13.21% and a net margin of 2.39%. Equities research analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors declared that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, August 26th that permits the company to repurchase $750.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.