Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Given New $360.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) had its target price lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $420.00 to $360.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on LAD. Benchmark reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Evercore ISI raised 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $365.91.

Remove Ads

Lithia Motors Stock Down 0.1 %

Lithia Motors stock traded down $0.35 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $289.54. The stock had a trading volume of 126,494 shares, compared to its average volume of 303,296. Lithia Motors has a one year low of $243.00 and a one year high of $405.68. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $340.16 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $343.32. The company has a market capitalization of $7.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.76, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. 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 (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 EPS 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%. On average, analysts expect that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors's payout ratio is 7.14%.

Insider Activity

In other Lithia Motors news, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total transaction of $154,864.84. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,605 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,001,049.40. This trade represents a 13.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,665 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $645,786.90. This trade represents a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,246 shares of company stock valued at $433,724 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.87% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,194,539 shares of the company's stock valued at $426,968,000 after buying an additional 27,035 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 753,067 shares of the company's stock valued at $239,204,000 after acquiring an additional 85,579 shares during the last quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP now owns 510,388 shares of the company's stock worth $182,428,000 after purchasing an additional 11,674 shares in the last quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 137.8% during the 4th quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP now owns 460,298 shares of the company's stock valued at $164,524,000 after purchasing an additional 266,715 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at about $152,752,000.

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.