Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) has received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve research firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $367.2222.

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on LAD. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays cut their price target on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Lithia Motors from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $335.00 to $320.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th.

Lithia Motors Trading Up 4.9%

LAD opened at $269.79 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $267.39 and a 200 day moving average price of $299.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.24. Lithia Motors has a 12 month low of $239.78 and a 12 month high of $360.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.47, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.28.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.06 by $0.28. The business had revenue of $9.27 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.49% and a net margin of 1.88%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $7.66 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Lithia Motors will post 34.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. This is an increase from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.01%.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 245 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.64, for a total value of $72,186.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,846 shares in the company, valued at $543,905.44. This represents a 11.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lithia Motors

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC raised its position in Lithia Motors by 111.4% in the 4th quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 75.0% during the 3rd quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 105 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period.

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.