WINTON GROUP Ltd Takes $4.81 Million Position in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 16,562 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,811,000. WINTON GROUP Ltd owned about 0.08% of Lithia Motors at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LAD. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its stake in Lithia Motors by 13.9% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,474 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,487,000 after acquiring an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 67.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 113,346 shares of the company's stock worth $33,272,000 after purchasing an additional 45,716 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 93,170 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,349,000 after purchasing an additional 13,407 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 16.2% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,430 shares of the company's stock valued at $821,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. grew its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 13.6% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 64,581 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,817,000 after purchasing an additional 7,740 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on LAD shares. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lithia Motors from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $365.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $490.00 target price on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $436.33.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of LAD stock opened at $365.90 on Friday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $239.78 and a 12 month high of $439.49. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $358.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $305.95. The firm has a market cap of $8.04 billion, a PE ratio of 12.14, a P/E/G ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.23. 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 (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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%. The company's revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $10.24 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. This is a boost from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 7th. Lithia Motors's payout ratio is currently 9.29%.

Lithia Motors announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, May 26th that authorizes the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

About Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors, operating under the Lithia & Driveway name, is an automotive retail company that sells new and used vehicles through a network of dealerships and digital channels. Its retail operations represent numerous automobile manufacturers and provide customers with vehicle purchasing, financing, leasing and protection products.

The company also operates parts and service departments that provide maintenance, repairs, collision work and replacement parts. Through its Driveway platform, Lithia offers online vehicle shopping, financing, trade-ins and delivery services, extending its automotive retail model beyond traditional dealership locations.

Founded in 1946 in Ashland, Oregon, Lithia Motors has expanded through acquisitions and dealership development.

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