Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Has $2.43 Million Stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) by 17.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 6,789 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 985 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $2,427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 69.9% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the company's stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 30.5% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167 shares of the company's stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 48.5% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 297 shares of the company's stock worth $106,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at $645,786.90. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were 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 owns 1,297 shares in the company, valued at approximately $377,219.48. This represents a 16.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,246 shares of company stock valued at $433,724. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on LAD. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $371.36.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 0.7 %

LAD traded down $2.07 during trading on Thursday, reaching $304.66. The company had a trading volume of 142,954 shares, compared to its average volume of 294,223. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.28. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.00 and a 12 month high of $405.68. The business's fifty day moving average price is $346.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $341.56. The company has a market cap of $8.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.26, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69.

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

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.70%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

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.