Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Price Target Cut to $400.00 by Analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its price objective lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $405.00 to $400.00 in a research report report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Stephens lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Guggenheim increased their target price on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Benchmark began coverage on Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised 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 report on Wednesday, September 25th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $357.40.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of LAD stock opened at $351.33 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $368.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $319.42. Lithia Motors has a one year low of $243.00 and a one year high of $405.67. The firm has a market cap of $9.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99, a P/E/G ratio of 4.77 and a beta of 1.67.

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

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.24%.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other news, CFO Tina Miller sold 1,000 shares of Lithia Motors 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $4,085,466.16. This trade represents a 8.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total value of $6,127,965.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 207,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,408,369.28. The trade was a 7.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 47,290 shares of company stock worth $17,959,596 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Whalen Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth approximately $248,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,696 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,679,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,073.7% during the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,770 shares of the company’s stock worth $990,000 after acquiring an additional 2,534 shares during the period. Red Spruce Capital LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 11.0% in the 4th quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 9,100 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,253,000 after acquiring an additional 905 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atomi Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter worth $202,000.

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.