Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Reaches New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) hit a new 52-week high on Friday after Guggenheim raised their price target on the stock from $380.00 to $418.00. Guggenheim currently has a buy rating on the stock. Lithia Motors traded as high as $390.00 and last traded at $388.71, with a volume of 9860 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $382.50.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Citigroup lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Stephens increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $357.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total value of $2,973,697.61. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 35,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,754,677.36. The trade was a 23.36 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $382.86, for a total value of $92,652.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,729 shares in the company, valued at $661,964.94. This represents a 12.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,698 shares of company stock valued at $13,309,244 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the third quarter worth about $223,000. M&T Bank Corp lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. Castleark Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,722,000. Wexford Capital LP bought a new stake in Lithia Motors during the third quarter worth approximately $507,000. Finally, Tensile Capital Management LP grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 2.4% during the third quarter. Tensile Capital Management LP now owns 261,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,071,000 after purchasing an additional 6,252 shares during the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $328.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $288.50. The company has a market cap of $10.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.27 and a beta of 1.63.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.60 by $0.61. The firm had revenue of $9.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $9.25 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.09 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.24%.

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