Lithia Motors, Inc. Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.53 (NYSE:LAD)

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, October 23rd, Zacks reports. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of 0.53 per share on Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.63%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th.

Lithia Motors has increased its dividend payment by an average of 16.3% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 15 consecutive years. Lithia Motors has a payout ratio of 6.3% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Lithia Motors to earn $33.78 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.12 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 6.3%.

Lithia Motors Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE LAD traded up $0.01 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $335.32. 454,718 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 256,718. Lithia Motors has a 12-month low of $231.36 and a 12-month high of $341.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 1.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $298.20 and a 200 day moving average price of $274.40. The firm has a market cap of $9.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.86, a P/E/G ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.64.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $7.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.09 by $0.78. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 13.84%. The company had revenue of $9.23 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $10.91 earnings per share. Lithia Motors's quarterly revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Lithia Motors will post 28.74 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Lithia Motors from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $315.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $350.80.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total value of $2,973,697.61. Following the transaction, the director now owns 35,352 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,754,677.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total transaction of $2,973,697.61. Following the transaction, the director now owns 35,352 shares in the company, valued at $9,754,677.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.65, for a total transaction of $88,632.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,707.30. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 23,021 shares of company stock worth $6,534,617. Corporate insiders own 1.79% of the company's stock.

About Lithia Motors

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.