JPMorgan Chase & Co. Lowers Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Price Target to $270.00

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its price target cut by investment analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $285.00 to $270.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s target price would indicate a potential upside of 7.38% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Lithia Motors in a research note on Wednesday, January 17th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $334.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 15th. Guggenheim cut their price target on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $297.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $375.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $318.55.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE LAD traded down $2.72 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $251.44. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 124,792 shares, compared to its average volume of 225,832. Lithia Motors has a 12 month low of $206.69 and a 12 month high of $331.96. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $280.91 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $283.35. The company has a market cap of $6.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.28.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $6.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.85 by ($1.74). Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 15.62% and a net margin of 2.87%. The business had revenue of $8.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $8.44 earnings per share. Lithia Motors’s quarterly revenue was up 22.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Lithia Motors will post 33.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 138 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $254.42, for a total value of $35,109.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $566,847.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FourThought Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,609 shares of the company’s stock worth $530,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Xponance Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,150,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 32.0% during the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,054,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 11,886 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,510,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc operates as an automotive retailer worldwide. It operates in two segments, Vehicle Operations and Financing Operations. The company's Vehicle Operations segment sells new and used vehicles; provides parts, repair, and maintenance services; vehicle finance; and insurance products.