Quantinno Capital Management LP decreased its stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 44.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,402 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,115 shares during the quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.07% of Lithia Motors worth $3,846,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LAD. SummitTX Capital L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 263.7% during the first quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. now owns 4,430 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,106,000 after acquiring an additional 3,212 shares during the period. Aristides Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. Aristides Capital LLC now owns 3,086 shares of the company's stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the 1st quarter worth about $834,000. Inceptionr LLC increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 90.2% during the 1st quarter. Inceptionr LLC now owns 2,904 shares of the company's stock worth $725,000 after purchasing an additional 1,377 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 48.1% during the 1st quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 142,812 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,663,000 after purchasing an additional 46,391 shares during the last quarter.
Lithia Motors Stock Performance
Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $374.40 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The firm has a market cap of $8.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.22. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $322.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $297.42. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $239.78 and a fifty-two week high of $439.49.
Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.73 by $1.30. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.16% and a net margin of 1.88%.The company had revenue of $9.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.64 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $10.24 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 35.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Lithia Motors declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.
Lithia Motors Increases Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. This is an increase from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.56%.
Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors
In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 245 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.64, for a total value of $72,186.80. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,846 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $543,905.44. This trade represents a 11.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total transaction of $83,329.29. Following the sale, the director owned 760 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $213,233.20. This represents a 28.10% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 782 shares of company stock worth $229,572. Corporate insiders own 1.08% of the company's stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
LAD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Benchmark upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Barclays reduced their target price on Lithia Motors from $370.00 to $360.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Bank of America increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $490.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $425.20.
Read Our Latest Research Report on LAD
Lithia Motors Profile
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Free Report)
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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