Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) is Bridge City Capital LLC's 9th Largest Position

Bridge City Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 8.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,180 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,586 shares during the period. Lithia Motors makes up about 2.0% of Bridge City Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Bridge City Capital LLC owned 0.08% of Lithia Motors worth $7,570,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 17.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 259,916 shares of the company's stock valued at $82,560,000 after acquiring an additional 37,677 shares during the period. Madison Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at $91,190,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 208,253 shares of the company's stock worth $74,436,000 after purchasing an additional 2,108 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its stake in Lithia Motors by 497.7% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 3,676 shares of the company's stock worth $1,314,000 after buying an additional 3,061 shares during the period. Finally, Capstone Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Lithia Motors during the 3rd quarter valued at about $731,000.

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Lithia Motors Stock Down 3.8 %

Shares of Lithia Motors stock traded down $11.77 on Thursday, reaching $295.60. The stock had a trading volume of 441,398 shares, compared to its average volume of 297,259. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.96, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $341.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $342.10. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.00 and a 1 year high of $405.68.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Lithia Motors from $420.00 to $360.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $365.91.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total transaction of $154,864.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 2,605 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,001,049.40. This represents a 13.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total transaction of $72,128.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,297 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $377,219.48. This represents a 16.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,246 shares of company stock valued at $433,724. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Lithia Motors 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.