Geode Capital Management LLC Has $141.91 Million Stock Holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Geode Capital Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 1.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 446,648 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,068 shares during the quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC owned about 1.68% of Lithia Motors worth $141,911,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Lithia Motors by 1.3% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 3,862 shares of the company's stock worth $975,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 23.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company's stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.6% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,911 shares of the company's stock valued at $607,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 12.8% during the second quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 459 shares of the company's stock worth $116,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Finally, Versor Investments LP grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 856 shares of the company's stock valued at $272,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

LAD stock traded down $10.04 on Tuesday, reaching $370.93. The company's stock had a trading volume of 396,476 shares, compared to its average volume of 260,871. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.00 and a 52 week high of $405.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $9.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.25 and a beta of 1.65. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $355.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $303.37.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last announced 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. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The firm had revenue of $9.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $9.25 EPS. Lithia Motors's revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LAD has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com raised Lithia Motors from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Lithia Motors from $375.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $357.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $382.86, for a total transaction of $92,652.12. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,729 shares in the company, valued at $661,964.94. The trade was a 12.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total transaction of $6,127,965.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 207,924 shares of the company's stock, valued at $80,408,369.28. This represents a 7.08 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 47,290 shares of company stock valued at $17,959,596. 1.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.