Brokerages Set Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Target Price at $382.50

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the ten brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $382.50.

Several research firms recently weighed in on LAD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $345.00 to $335.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Bank of America lifted their price objective 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. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $305.00 to $364.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. They set a "neutral" rating and a $340.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim cut their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $417.00 to $356.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd.

Lithia Motors Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE LAD traded up $5.33 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $319.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 198,394 shares, compared to its average volume of 312,766. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $328.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $325.61. Lithia Motors has a one year low of $247.01 and a one year high of $405.68. The stock has a market cap of $8.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $7.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.77 by ($0.11). Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.74% and a net margin of 2.30%. The firm 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 business earned $6.11 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. Lithia Motors's payout ratio is currently 6.93%.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 337 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director owned 1,632 shares of the company's stock, valued at $482,974.08. The trade was a 17.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 10,136,710.0% in the first quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 2,027,362 shares of the company's stock valued at $595,112,000 after purchasing an additional 2,027,342 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at about $152,752,000. Steadfast Capital Management LP boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 137.8% in the fourth quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 460,298 shares of the company's stock valued at $164,524,000 after acquiring an additional 266,715 shares during the period. Park West Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the first quarter valued at about $58,825,000. Finally, Millennium Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,840.6% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 181,777 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,359,000 after acquiring an additional 172,410 shares during the period.

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.