Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD Shares Bought by Cwm LLC

Cwm LLC raised its position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 79.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 381 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Cwm LLC’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $129,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LAD. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 50.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 118.1% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,841 shares of the company’s stock valued at $541,000 after purchasing an additional 997 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 1.5% in the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 2,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $711,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 12.1% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,178 shares of the company’s stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 47.8% in the first quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 5,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,749,000 after acquiring an additional 1,928 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on LAD shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Lithia Motors from $500.00 to $385.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Lithia Motors from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Lithia Motors from $385.00 to $399.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $380.11.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE LAD opened at $314.11 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $323.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $317.70. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $262.10 and a twelve month high of $405.67. The company has a market capitalization of $8.05 billion, a PE ratio of 9.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 22nd. The company reported $9.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.53 by $0.97. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 13.42% and a net margin of 2.39%.The firm had revenue of $9.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $8.21 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 7th will be issued a $0.55 dividend. This represents a $2.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 7th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.37%.

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

About Lithia Motors

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.