Northern Trust Corp Purchases 11,289 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Lithia Motors, acquiring an additional 11,289 shares in Q1, raising its total ownership to 268,268 shares valued at approximately $78.7 million.
• Several analysts adjusted their price targets for Lithia Motors, with Bank of America raising its target from $430.00 to $500.00 and JPMorgan Chase lowering its target from $335.00 to $315.00.
• Lithia Motors reported robust quarterly earnings, posting $10.24 earnings per share, exceeding estimates, and announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.55 per share.

Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 4.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 268,268 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,289 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 1.03% of Lithia Motors worth $78,747,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of LAD. Vident Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 780 shares of the company's stock valued at $279,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.5% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 2,421 shares of the company's stock valued at $711,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 700 shares of the company's stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Mariner LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 1,475 shares of the company's stock valued at $527,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 30.1% in the first 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. 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. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $430.00 to $500.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th. Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $383.00 to $380.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped 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 research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $378.00 to $383.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $379.00.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE:LAD opened at $326.8080 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.38 billion, a PE ratio of 9.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 1.30. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $320.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $316.27. 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 12-month low of $255.32 and a 12-month high of $405.67.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last posted 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 company had revenue of $9.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.56 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 13.21%. Research analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.52%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 256 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.05, for a total transaction of $75,020.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director 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 SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.87% of the company's stock.

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.

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