Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Trading Up 14.5% on Strong Earnings

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)’s share price traded up 14.5% on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $407.00 and last traded at $410.2550. 140,350 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 54% from the average session volume of 307,375 shares. The stock had previously closed at $358.31.

The company reported $10.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.73 by $1.30. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 12.49%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $10.24 EPS.

Lithia Motors declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, May 26th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $348.00 to $370.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, July 20th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Lithia Motors from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $380.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 245 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.64, for a total value of $72,186.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,846 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $543,905.44. This represents a 11.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total value of $83,329.29. Following the sale, the director directly owned 760 shares in the company, valued at $213,233.20. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 782 shares of company stock valued at $229,572. 1.08% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 13.9% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,474 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,487,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 67.6% in the 1st 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 boosted its holdings 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. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 16.2% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,430 shares of the company’s stock worth $821,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new stake in Lithia Motors during the second quarter worth approximately $651,000.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $9.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $305.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $294.24.

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.