Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Shares Break Above 200-Day Moving Average - What's Next?

Key Points

• Lithia Motors shares rose above their 200-day moving average, trading as high as $309.92, though the price remained below the 50-day average of $321.13.
• Analyst views remain mixed but lean positive: six analysts rate the stock Buy and six rate it Hold, resulting in a “Moderate Buy” consensus and a $393.80 average price target.
• The company exceeded quarterly earnings and revenue expectations, while increasing its quarterly dividend to $0.75 per share, equivalent to a 1.0% annual yield.

Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday. The stock has a 200-day moving average of $307.77 and traded as high as $309.92. Lithia Motors shares last traded at $309.62, with a volume of 268,034 shares changing hands.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on LAD shares. Weiss Ratings lowered Lithia Motors from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Barclays decreased their price target on Lithia Motors from $375.00 to $345.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $335.00 to $305.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $490.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $393.80.

Lithia Motors Trading Up 3.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $321.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $307.77. The company has a market cap of $6.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.91, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.27.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The company reported $10.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $9.70 by $0.64. The firm had revenue of $9.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.75 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.05% and a net margin of 2.06%. Lithia Motors's quarterly revenue was up 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $9.50 EPS. Research analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 35.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 6th. Lithia Motors's payout ratio is 8.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Stacy Congdon sold 75 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.73, for a total transaction of $27,804.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $852,679. This represents a 3.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 1.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Lithia Motors

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors during the second quarter worth approximately $696,482,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its stake in Lithia Motors by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,389,870 shares of the company's stock valued at $347,074,000 after acquiring an additional 43,087 shares in the last quarter. Madison Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the 2nd quarter valued at about $66,988,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 2nd quarter valued at about $63,015,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,718,000.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc is an automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Operating under the Lithia & Driveway name, the company sells new and used vehicles through a network of franchised dealerships and digital retail channels. Its dealerships represent a broad range of domestic, Asian and European automotive brands.

In addition to vehicle sales, Lithia provides related services including vehicle financing and insurance products, parts and maintenance, collision repair, and other after-sales support.

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