Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Price Target Cut to $355.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its price objective lowered by Wells Fargo & Company from $358.00 to $355.00 in a report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on LAD. Evercore lifted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $440.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $385.00 to $399.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Lithia Motors from $410.00 to $390.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $389.90.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 5.2%

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $303.59 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $334.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $320.82. Lithia Motors has a fifty-two week low of $262.10 and a fifty-two week high of $389.61. The firm has a market cap of $7.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.45 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $6.74 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.09 by ($1.35). Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.76% and a net margin of 2.18%.The firm had revenue of $9.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $7.79 EPS. Lithia Motors’s revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is presently 6.37%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 75 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total value of $27,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $651,600. This represents a 3.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the 3rd quarter valued at about $26,000. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 114.6% in the second quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 88 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,383.3% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 89 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Lithia Motors during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000.

Key Headlines Impacting Lithia Motors

Here are the key news stories impacting Lithia Motors this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company highlights and capital return: Lithia reported record full‑year revenue and disclosed heavy buybacks (about $947M repurchased in 2025, ~11.4% of shares outstanding) and announced a quarterly dividend, all supportive for shareholder value. PR Newswire – Q4 & Full Year Results
• Positive Sentiment: Aftermarket and used-vehicle strength: Used revenue rose and aftersales delivered double-digit same-store gross profit growth, which helps margins and recurring revenue resilience vs. new-vehicle cyclicality. PR Newswire – Q4 & Full Year Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst price target moves: JPMorgan trimmed its PT to $350 but kept an overweight rating; Wells Fargo trimmed its PT to $355 and set an equal-weight rating — both PTs still imply upside from current levels, so these are mixed signals. Benzinga – Analyst PTs
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage and transcripts: Multiple outlets published the earnings call transcript, slide deck and valuation pieces — useful for investors digging into guidance, margin drivers and acquisition impact. Seeking Alpha – Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings miss: Q4 EPS was $6.74 vs. Street $8.09 consensus (and vs. $7.79 a year ago), a significant miss that likely drove near‑term selling pressure. Zacks – Q4 Earnings Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue and unit trends mixed: Q4 revenue was essentially flat year‑over‑year (new vehicle sales declined while used and aftersales rose), and some headlines framed it as missing expectations — raising concerns about margin leverage and growth trajectory. MarketBeat – Q4 Results Summary

About Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company’s core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.