Lithium Americas (Argentina) Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:LAR)

Lithium Americas (Argentina) Corp. (NYSE:LAR) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Friday. Investors purchased 4,600 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 120% compared to the typical daily volume of 2,092 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on LAR. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) from $3.50 to $4.25 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. National Bankshares lifted their target price on shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) from $4.75 to $6.50 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lithium Americas (Argentina) currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $4.92.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithium Americas (Argentina)

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Lithium Americas (Argentina) in the 1st quarter valued at $1,064,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. purchased a new position in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) during the 1st quarter worth $108,000. Old West Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) during the 1st quarter valued at about $238,000. Invesco Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) during the 1st quarter valued at about $3,307,000. Finally, Boston Partners grew its holdings in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 15.3% in the second quarter. Boston Partners now owns 136,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $284,000 after purchasing an additional 18,096 shares during the period. 49.17% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lithium Americas (Argentina) Stock Up 8.7%

Lithium Americas (Argentina) stock opened at $5.38 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $4.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $3.55. Lithium Americas has a 52-week low of $1.71 and a 52-week high of $5.83.

Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.01) by ($0.01). Equities analysts anticipate that Lithium Americas will post -0.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithium Americas (Argentina) Company Profile

Lithium Americas (Argentina) is a subsidiary of Lithium Americas Corp. focused on the exploration, development and production of lithium brine resources in the Jujuy province of northwest Argentina. The company’s principal asset is the Cauchari-Olaroz project, situated within the Lithium Triangle, one of the world’s richest regions for lithium-bearing brines. Through its Argentine operations, Lithium Americas aims to supply battery-grade lithium carbonate critical to electric vehicle and energy-storage markets.

The Cauchari-Olaroz project encompasses concessions on the Salar de Cauchari and Salar de Olaroz salt flats, where detailed drilling programs and pilot‐scale evaporation ponds have demonstrated favorable lithium concentrations.