Zacks Research Predicts Increased Earnings for Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q1 2025 earnings estimates for Lithia Motors in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, February 26th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now anticipates that the company will earn $7.98 per share for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $7.97. The consensus estimate for Lithia Motors' current full-year earnings is $34.45 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Lithia Motors' Q3 2025 earnings at $9.44 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $7.31 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $9.18 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $9.03 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $9.92 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $43.24 EPS.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on LAD. StockNews.com raised shares of Lithia Motors from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $371.36.

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Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of LAD stock traded down $7.34 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $317.96. 533,489 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 385,098. 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 has a 52 week low of $243.00 and a 52 week high of $405.67. The stock has a market cap of $8.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.67. The stock's 50-day moving average is $359.36 and its 200-day moving average is $341.18.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (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%.

Institutional Trading of Lithia Motors

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LAD. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,194,539 shares of the company's stock worth $426,968,000 after acquiring an additional 27,035 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 12.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 753,067 shares of the company's stock worth $239,204,000 after purchasing an additional 85,579 shares during the last quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Lyrical Asset Management LP now owns 510,388 shares of the company's stock valued at $182,428,000 after purchasing an additional 11,674 shares in the last quarter. Steadfast Capital Management LP lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 137.8% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at $152,752,000.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,665 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $645,786.90. This represents a 16.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total value of $154,864.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,605 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,001,049.40. This represents a 13.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.67%. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.14%.

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.