Handelsbanken Fonder AB Decreases Stock Position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lessened its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 7,258 shares of the company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $2,594,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in LAD. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 69.9% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 33.9% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 49.3% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE LAD opened at $347.65 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The business has a 50-day moving average of $361.46 and a 200-day moving average of $339.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.71, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.67. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.00 and a 12 month high of $405.67.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. Sell-side analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.61%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $645,786.90. This represents a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Tina Miller sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $392.72, for a total transaction of $392,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,085,466.16. This represents a 8.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,728 shares of company stock worth $673,639 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on LAD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 target price on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $371.36.

About Lithia Motors

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.