Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Price Target Raised to $355.00

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its target price boosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $350.00 to $355.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $385.00 to $399.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $440.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. Barclays began coverage on Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $410.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Lithia Motors from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $392.70.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 0.1%

LAD stock opened at $332.19 on Friday. Lithia Motors has a twelve month low of $262.10 and a twelve month high of $405.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.62 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $325.57 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $321.24.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The company reported $9.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.53 by $0.97. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 13.42%. The firm had revenue of $9.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.38 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $8.21 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 7th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 75 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total value of $27,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,810 shares in the company, valued at $651,600. The trade was a 3.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.87% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LAD. Abrams Capital Management L.P. increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 1.9% during the third quarter. Abrams Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,490,534 shares of the company’s stock valued at $787,009,000 after buying an additional 45,856 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Lithia Motors by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,340,670 shares of the company’s stock valued at $423,662,000 after acquiring an additional 14,015 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 612,377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $206,873,000 after acquiring an additional 33,966 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.5% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 479,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $162,022,000 after acquiring an additional 11,859 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 2nd quarter worth $148,540,000.

About Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company’s core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.