Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Price Target to $355.00

by · The Markets Daily

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD – Free Report) had its price target reduced by Wells Fargo & Company from $358.00 to $355.00 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on LAD. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $410.00 to $390.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Lithia Motors from $385.00 to $399.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, October 23rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $389.90.

Get Our Latest Stock Report on LAD

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LAD opened at $301.64 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $333.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $320.99. Lithia Motors has a 1-year low of $262.10 and a 1-year high of $388.36. The firm has a market cap of $7.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.39 and a beta of 1.20.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $6.74 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.09 by ($1.35). Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.18% and a return on equity of 12.76%. The firm had revenue of $9.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $7.79 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.7%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 6.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 75 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total value of $27,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,810 shares in the company, valued at $651,600. This represents a 3.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Kestra Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $68,000. FORA Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter worth $849,000. Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 183.6% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 162,937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,149,000 after buying an additional 105,478 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 101.9% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 109 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridgefront Capital LLC purchased a new position in Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter worth $614,000.

About Lithia Motors

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Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company’s core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.

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