Analysts Set Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Price Target at $368.11

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) has earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $379.00.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Weiss Ratings lowered Lithia Motors from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Bank of America raised their target price on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $417.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Lithia Motors in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $348.00 price target for the company.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

NYSE LAD opened at $311.93 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $291.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $294.52. Lithia Motors has a 52 week low of $239.78 and a 52 week high of $360.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.95, a PEG ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 1.26.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.06 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $9.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 12.49%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $7.66 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors will post 34.37 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This is a boost from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.01%.

Lithia Motors announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 26th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 165 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.64, for a total transaction of $50,430.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 1,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $513,780.84. The trade was a 8.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total transaction of $83,329.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 760 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $213,233.20. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 782 shares of company stock worth $229,572. 1.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of LAD. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 18.6% in the second quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $603,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the period. Crumly & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. now owns 1,246 shares of the company’s stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Red Spruce Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 9,348 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,716,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. 180 Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,116 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,648,000 after purchasing an additional 328 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 32.1% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 173 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period.

About Lithia Motors

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.