Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Given New $310.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its target price cut by Morgan Stanley from $358.00 to $310.00 in a research note released on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

LAD has been the subject of several other reports. UBS Group lowered Lithia Motors from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $370.00 to $440.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Barclays raised their target price on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 19th. Benchmark lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Lithia Motors from $455.00 to $409.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $419.10.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 1.2%

LAD opened at $304.06 on Monday. Lithia Motors has a twelve month low of $239.78 and a twelve month high of $439.49. The company has a fifty day moving average of $355.90 and a 200-day moving average of $311.88. The stock has a market cap of $6.68 billion, a PE ratio of 10.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.73 by $1.30. The business had revenue of $9.79 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.64 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 12.16%. Lithia Motors’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $10.24 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Lithia Motors will post 36 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This is a boost from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.29%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Stacy Congdon sold 75 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $370.73, for a total value of $27,804.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,300 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $852,679. This trade represents a 3.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LAD. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 46.5% in the 3rd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 186 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,165 shares of the company’s stock valued at $629,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the 2nd quarter valued at about $241,000. Tidal Investments LLC increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 10.9% during the 2nd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 3,694 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,073,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the second quarter worth approximately $4,811,000.

About Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors, Inc, doing business as Lithia & Driveway (NYSE:LAD), is an automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised dealerships and other vehicle-sales businesses. The company sells new and used vehicles from a broad range of automobile manufacturers, including domestic, import and luxury brands.

In addition to vehicle sales, Lithia & Driveway provides automotive financing and insurance products, maintenance and repair services, replacement parts, collision services and other related offerings.