Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Makes New Investment in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Key Points

• Susquehanna Fundamental Investments initiated a 12,087-share position in Lithia Motors valued at approximately $3.5 million, joining several other institutional investors that increased their holdings.
• Lithia Motors exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $10.03 in EPS and $9.79 billion in revenue, while revenue grew 2.2% year over year. The company also authorized a $500 million share buyback and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.70 per share.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $436.33, although UBS downgraded the stock to neutral. Shares recently opened at $366.72.

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 12,087 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,511,000. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC owned about 0.05% of Lithia Motors at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 3.8% during the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 984 shares of the company's stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Vident Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 4.6% in the second quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 842 shares of the company's stock valued at $285,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Occudo Quantitative Strategies LP now owns 4,616 shares of the company's stock worth $1,534,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 32.1% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 173 shares of the company's stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 165 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.64, for a total value of $50,430.60. Following the sale, the director owned 1,681 shares of the company's stock, valued at $513,780.84. The trade was a 8.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 1.08% of the company's stock.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $366.72 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.06 billion, a PE ratio of 12.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $239.78 and a 52 week high of $439.49. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $345.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $301.93.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.73 by $1.30. The firm had revenue of $9.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.64 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 12.16%. Lithia Motors's revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $10.24 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 36 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, May 26th that allows the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 7th. This is an increase from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is 9.29%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on LAD. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $365.00 to $455.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. Weiss Ratings raised Lithia Motors from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. UBS Group downgraded Lithia Motors from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $370.00 to $440.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $436.33.

About Lithia Motors

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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