Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Holdings Raised by Alliancebernstein L.P.

Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD – Get Rating) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 720,275 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,657 shares during the quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. owned about 2.38% of Lithia Motors worth $213,886,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. National Bank of Canada FI bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 417.2% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 83.7% during the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Covestor Ltd bought a new stake in Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter worth about $57,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.83% of the company’s stock.

Shares of LAD opened at $306.10 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $272.20 and a 1-year high of $387.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.49. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $298.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $302.16.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 20th. The company reported $11.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $9.63 by $2.33. The business had revenue of $6.71 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.34 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 4.95% and a return on equity of 29.65%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 54.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $5.89 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 46.96 earnings per share for the current year.

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 27th. Investors of record on Friday, May 13th were given a $0.42 dividend. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 12th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is 4.00%.

In related news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.00, for a total transaction of $1,525,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 50,779 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,487,595. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP George N. Hines sold 1,820 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $343.09, for a total transaction of $624,423.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 7,070 shares of company stock worth $2,229,681 over the last three months. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Several equities research analysts have commented on LAD shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $260.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $425.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 24th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $542.00 to $578.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $362.00 to $350.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $410.71.

Lithia Motors Company Profile (Get Rating)

Lithia Motors, Inc operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Domestic, Import, and Luxury. It offers new and used vehicles; vehicle financing services; warranties, insurance contracts, and vehicle and theft protection services; and automotive repair and maintenance services, as well as sells vehicle body and parts under the Driveway and GreenCars brand names.

Recommended Stories