Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) is Tensile Capital Management LP’s 3rd Largest Position

Tensile Capital Management LP raised its position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 2.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 261,527 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,252 shares during the period. Lithia Motors makes up about 9.0% of Tensile Capital Management LP’s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Tensile Capital Management LP’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $83,071,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 83.6% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 23.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 12,500.0% during the second quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the second quarter worth about $80,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LAD has been the topic of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $375.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $357.60.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total transaction of $6,127,965.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 207,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,408,369.28. This trade represents a 7.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $382.86, for a total transaction of $92,652.12. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $661,964.94. The trade was a 12.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 58,067 shares of company stock worth $20,933,294 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LAD opened at $376.89 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $346.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $296.79. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.00 and a 52 week high of $405.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.86, a PEG ratio of 6.31 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.60 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $9.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 12.95%. Lithia Motors’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $9.25 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.24%.

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.