Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Boosts Stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 2.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,440 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $1,093,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 83.6% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Lithia Motors by 23.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake 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 acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $80,000.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE LAD opened at $376.11 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $316.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $283.75. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $243.00 and a 12 month high of $388.36. 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 capitalization of $10.02 billion, a PE ratio of 12.84 and a beta of 1.63.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $9.25 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.09 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total transaction of $6,127,965.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 207,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,408,369.28. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Lithia Motors news, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.21, for a total transaction of $2,855,989.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 32,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,744,821.34. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total value 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 represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 47,081 shares of company stock valued at $15,429,939 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America increased their target price on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com raised Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Stephens increased their price objective on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $353.80.

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.