Mutual of America Capital Management LLC Lowers Holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Mutual of America Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LADFree Report) by 5.6% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 12,946 shares of the company’s stock after selling 763 shares during the quarter. Mutual of America Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $4,373,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.5% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 2,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $711,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 0.6% in the 2nd quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 7,880 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,662,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 30.1% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 212 shares of the company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 29.1% in the 2nd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 262 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 4.6% in the second quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 1,434 shares of the company’s stock worth $485,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on LAD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $500.00 to $385.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. They set a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $378.00 to $383.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $381.00.

Read Our Latest Research Report on Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE:LAD opened at $308.32 on Thursday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $262.10 and a fifty-two week high of $405.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.91 billion, a PE ratio of 9.14, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.29 and a current ratio of 1.22. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $322.29 and its 200 day moving average is $315.90.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LADGet Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The company reported $9.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.53 by $0.97. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 13.21%. The business had revenue of $9.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.38 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $8.21 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 7th. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.52%.

Lithia Motors declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, August 26th that permits the company to buyback $750.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 256 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $293.05, for a total transaction of $75,020.80. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,376 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $403,236.80. This trade represents a 15.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Profile

(Free Report)

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. Its Financing Operations segment provides financing to customers buying and leasing retail vehicles.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD)

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