Key Points
- Director Richard Bailey, Jr. sold 297 Lithia Motors shares on May 26 at an average price of $280.57, totaling about $83,329. His ownership fell by 28.1% to 760 shares.
- Lithia Motors’ stock rose 3.5% and opened at $293.02, while the company continues to trade at a market cap of about $6.68 billion with a P/E ratio of 10.29.
- The company boosted its quarterly dividend to $0.57 from $0.55 and authorized a $500 million share repurchase program, signaling management confidence in the stock’s value.
Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) Director Richard Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total transaction of $83,329.29. Following the transaction, the director owned 760 shares in the company, valued at $213,233.20. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link.
Lithia Motors Stock Up 3.5%
Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $293.02 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a current ratio of 0.99. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52-week low of $239.78 and a 52-week high of $360.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.28. The company's 50 day moving average price is $269.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $298.60.
Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.06 by $0.28. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 12.49%. The firm had revenue of $9.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $9.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $7.66 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.26 EPS for the current year.
Lithia Motors declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, May 26th that permits the company to repurchase $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.
Lithia Motors Increases Dividend
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.57 dividend. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Lithia Motors's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.01%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several brokerages have recently issued reports on LAD. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $335.00 to $320.00 in a report on Monday, April 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Citigroup raised their price target on Lithia Motors from $326.00 to $365.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Lithia Motors from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $365.30.
Check Out Our Latest Report on Lithia Motors
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at $125,214,000. River Road Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 33.6% during the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 742,677 shares of the company's stock valued at $246,814,000 after buying an additional 186,628 shares during the period. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at $58,409,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 8,474.0% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 107,690 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,789,000 after buying an additional 106,434 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 183.6% during the fourth 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 during the period.
Lithia Motors Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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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