Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 124.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,401 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,996 shares during the period. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $1,716,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 14.7% in the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,700,893 shares of the company's stock valued at $429,390,000 after buying an additional 217,867 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 25.0% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,016,520 shares of the company's stock valued at $256,621,000 after acquiring an additional 203,543 shares during the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 118.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,860 shares of the company's stock worth $40,609,000 after acquiring an additional 87,362 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 7.2% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 727,849 shares of the company's stock valued at $218,981,000 after purchasing an additional 48,938 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in Lithia Motors by 1,502.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 48,919 shares of the company's stock valued at $12,445,000 after buying an additional 45,866 shares during the last quarter.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
Several brokerages have recently weighed in on LAD. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price 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. Morgan Stanley raised Lithia Motors from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com downgraded Lithia Motors from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday. 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. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $380.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $353.80.
Get Our Latest Stock Report on LAD
Insider Activity
In other news, 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 directly owns 32,054 shares in the company, valued at $10,744,821.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.21, for a total value 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 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total transaction of $2,973,697.61. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 35,352 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 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.
Lithia Motors Price Performance
Shares of Lithia Motors stock traded up $18.51 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $369.18. 562,884 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 270,110. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $306.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $279.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.60 and a beta of 1.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.00 and a fifty-two week high of $375.08.
Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $7.60 by $0.61. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%. The firm had revenue of $9.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $9.25 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 28.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.24%.
Lithia Motors Company Profile
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Free Report)
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.
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