Peak Retirement Planning Inc. Takes $874,000 Position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Peak Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 2,435 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $874,000.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LAD. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in Lithia Motors by 69.9% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company's stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter valued at about $202,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 1,073.7% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,770 shares of the company's stock valued at $990,000 after purchasing an additional 2,534 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,696 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,679,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 767 shares of the company's stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 337 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.94, for a total transaction of $99,731.78. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 1,632 shares in the company, valued at $482,974.08. This represents a 17.12% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 270 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.80, for a total transaction of $80,676.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,213 shares in the company, valued at approximately $362,444.40. This trade represents a 18.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 855 shares of company stock worth $252,536 in the last ninety days. 0.87% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAD has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $420.00 to $360.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Guggenheim decreased their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $417.00 to $356.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $397.00 to $308.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Citigroup raised shares of Lithia Motors from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $415.00 to $375.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $361.20.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 0.7%

Lithia Motors stock traded down $2.06 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $313.82. 254,983 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 316,722. The company has a market cap of $8.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.57, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.48. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.04 and a twelve month high of $405.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a fifty day moving average of $299.40 and a 200-day moving average of $337.28.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $7.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.77 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.19 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.43% and a net margin of 2.21%. Lithia Motors's quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.11 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.70%. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is 6.93%.

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.