Assetmark Inc. Has $418,000 Stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Assetmark Inc. reduced its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 82.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,316 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,052 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.'s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $418,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in Lithia Motors by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 3,862 shares of the company's stock worth $975,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company's stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its position in Lithia Motors by 12.8% in the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 459 shares of the company's stock worth $116,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 83.6% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company's stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 13.3% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 554 shares of the company's stock valued at $167,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total transaction of $6,127,965.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 207,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,408,369.28. This trade represents a 7.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of the company's stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 32,054 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,744,821.34. This represents a 21.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 50,394 shares of company stock valued at $16,688,879. Insiders own 1.79% of the company's stock.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 0.4 %

NYSE LAD traded down $1.55 on Friday, hitting $371.06. 205,644 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 340,354. The company's 50 day moving average price is $319.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $285.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.66 and a beta of 1.63. 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 $388.36.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $7.60 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $9.22 billion during 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $9.25 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is 7.24%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Lithia Motors from $375.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Stephens lifted 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" 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.