Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Cut to Neutral at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research note released on Friday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has $335.00 target price on the stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $385.00 to $399.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Lithia Motors from $358.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Evercore lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $440.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Lithia Motors from $390.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $386.00.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $293.71 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.26, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $329.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $321.54. Lithia Motors has a 52 week low of $262.10 and a 52 week high of $363.78. The company has a market capitalization of $7.12 billion, a PE ratio of 9.14 and a beta of 1.20.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $6.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.09 by ($1.35). The business had revenue of $9.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.19 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.76% and a net margin of 2.18%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.79 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is 6.85%.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 75 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total value of $27,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $651,600. The trade was a 3.98% 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 owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 114.6% in the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 88 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 1,383.3% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 89 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC grew its position in Lithia Motors by 111.4% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000.

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.