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

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twelve brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $368.1111.

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research raised Lithia Motors from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. UBS Group began coverage on Lithia Motors in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $348.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Lithia Motors from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

NYSE:LAD opened at $313.47 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Lithia Motors has a 52 week low of $239.78 and a 52 week high of $360.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.15 billion, a PE ratio of 11.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.26. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $281.07 and its 200-day moving average price is $298.81.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.06 by $0.28. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.49% and a net margin of 1.88%.The company had revenue of $9.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $7.66 EPS. Lithia Motors’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Lithia Motors will post 34.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This is an increase from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total transaction of $83,329.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 760 shares in the company, valued at approximately $213,233.20. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 165 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.64, for a total transaction of $50,430.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $513,780.84. The trade was a 8.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 707 shares of company stock worth $205,947 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of LAD. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at $125,214,000. River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 33.6% in the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 742,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,814,000 after acquiring an additional 186,628 shares in the last quarter. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd acquired a new position in Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at $58,409,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 8,474.0% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 107,690 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,789,000 after buying an additional 106,434 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 183.6% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 162,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,149,000 after buying an additional 105,478 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.