Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) have been assigned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the ten analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $379.40.

LAD has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup raised Lithia Motors from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $415.00 to $375.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Lithia Motors from $397.00 to $308.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Lithia Motors from $420.00 to $360.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Guggenheim dropped 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. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $430.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 16th.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 337 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.94, for a total value of $99,731.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,632 shares in the company, valued at $482,974.08. The trade was a 17.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lithia Motors

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 1,420.0% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 152 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the period. eCIO Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 1st quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 1st quarter valued at about $59,000.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE:LAD opened at $339.33 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $311.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $329.54. The stock has a market cap of $8.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.47. Lithia Motors has a twelve month low of $243.04 and a twelve month high of $405.68.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $7.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.77 by ($0.11). Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.30% and a return on equity of 12.74%. The company had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.11 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were paid a $0.55 dividend. This is a boost from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. Lithia Motors's payout ratio is presently 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.

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