Blueshift Asset Management LLC Invests $217,000 in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Blueshift Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $217,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LAD. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 69.9% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 1,420.0% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 152 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 30.5% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $371.36.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 270 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.80, for a total transaction of $80,676.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $362,444.40. This trade represents a 18.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total transaction of $72,128.32. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $377,219.48. This represents a 16.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 1,246 shares of company stock valued at $433,724. 0.87% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $306.45 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.33, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $345.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $341.69. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.00 and a 52 week high of $405.68.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

Lithia Motors Company 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.