Amalgamated Bank Decreases Stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Amalgamated Bank cut its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 25.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,761 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,384 shares during the quarter. Amalgamated Bank's holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $4,053,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,071 shares of the company's stock worth $658,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 18.0% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 19,375 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,497,000 after acquiring an additional 2,952 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 124.6% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 5,401 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,716,000 after acquiring an additional 2,996 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 120.7% during the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,549 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,445,000 after acquiring an additional 2,488 shares during the period. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the 3rd quarter valued at about $221,000.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE LAD traded up $2.87 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $371.36. 192,110 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 296,044. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.00 and a twelve month high of $375.15. The company has a market cap of $9.89 billion, a PE ratio of 12.68 and a beta of 1.63. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $310.97 and its 200-day simple moving average is $281.11.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $9.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%. The firm's revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $9.25 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 28.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.24%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.21, for a total transaction of $2,855,989.20. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 32,054 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,744,821.34. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Lithia Motors news, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.21, for a total value of $2,855,989.20. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 32,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,744,821.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total value of $2,973,697.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 35,352 shares in the company, valued at $9,754,677.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 31,235 shares of company stock valued at $9,301,973 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on LAD shares. Bank of America raised their target price on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Stephens raised their target price on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. StockNews.com cut Lithia Motors from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $353.80.

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.