Holocene Advisors LP Purchases 9,265 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Holocene Advisors LP grew its holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 71.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 22,149 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,265 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $7,035,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the second quarter worth about $607,000. Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in Lithia Motors in the 2nd quarter worth about $339,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 15.5% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 1,587 shares of the company’s stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Lithia Motors by 83.6% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Timber Creek Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 15.9% in the second quarter. Timber Creek Capital Management LLC now owns 7,546 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,905,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033 shares in the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

NYSE:LAD opened at $384.33 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $343.36 and a two-hundred day moving average of $295.63. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.00 and a 12 month high of $405.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The firm has a market cap of $10.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.36 and a beta of 1.65.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.60 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $9.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 12.95%. Lithia Motors’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $9.25 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 7.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on LAD shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $357.60.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In related news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 6,742 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total transaction of $2,696,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 174,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,778,000. This represents a 3.72 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $382.86, for a total value of $92,652.12. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,729 shares in the company, valued at $661,964.94. This represents a 12.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 58,067 shares of company stock worth $20,933,294. Insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors 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.