Harfst & Associates Inc. Sells 1,715 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Key Points

• Harfst & Associates Inc. reduced its stake in Lithia Motors by 5.7% in the first quarter, holding 28,608 shares valued at approximately $8.4 million.
• Several hedge funds, including LPL Financial and Wells Fargo, have increased their holdings in Lithia Motors, with LPL Financial raising its stake by 14.2%.
• Analysts have set a consensus price target for Lithia Motors at $379.00, with a majority of them rating the stock as a "buy".

Harfst & Associates Inc. reduced its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 5.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,608 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,715 shares during the period. Lithia Motors makes up approximately 1.9% of Harfst & Associates Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Harfst & Associates Inc. owned about 0.11% of Lithia Motors worth $8,398,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 1st quarter worth approximately $59,000. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 63.7% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 203 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 30.1% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 212 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Lithia Motors by 50.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 252 shares of the company's stock worth $74,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 1st quarter worth $143,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAD has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $430.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Lithia Motors in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $340.00 price objective for the company. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price 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. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective 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 equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $379.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE LAD traded up $1.15 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $305.72. The company had a trading volume of 63,917 shares, compared to its average volume of 338,045. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 1.22 and a quick ratio of 0.29. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $321.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $318.03. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $255.32 and a 12 month high of $405.67. The firm has a market cap of $7.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.06, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.30.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $9.78 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 13.21% and a net margin of 2.39%.The business had revenue of $9.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.56 billion. As a group, analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.