Eventide Asset Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Eventide Asset Management LLC lowered its holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 2.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 181,175 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,011 shares during the period. Eventide Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.75% of Lithia Motors worth $57,295,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Lithia Motors by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,487,000 after buying an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 67.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 113,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,272,000 after acquiring an additional 45,716 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 16.8% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 93,170 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,349,000 after acquiring an additional 13,407 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 98.1% in the second quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 1,367 shares of the company’s stock valued at $462,000 after acquiring an additional 677 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 13.5% in the second quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 2,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $682,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LAD has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Lithia Motors from $358.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Lithia Motors from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $335.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Bank of America assumed coverage on Lithia Motors in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $390.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $399.00 to $366.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $382.33.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE:LAD opened at $254.90 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.96 billion, a PE ratio of 7.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.20. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $308.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $317.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.26. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $251.00 and a 12 month high of $360.55.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $6.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.09 by ($1.35). The business had revenue of $9.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.19 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.76% and a net margin of 2.18%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $7.79 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.85%.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

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.