Chicago Capital LLC Has $68.96 Million Stock Holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Chicago Capital LLC boosted its position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 217,102 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,666 shares during the period. Lithia Motors makes up about 1.9% of Chicago Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. Chicago Capital LLC’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $68,960,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LAD. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.3% in the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 3,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $975,000 after buying an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 12.8% during the 2nd quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 459 shares of the company’s stock valued at $116,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in 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 period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 13.3% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 554 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.8% in the second quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 2,628 shares of the company’s stock valued at $663,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LAD has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com lowered shares of Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Guggenheim raised Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $338.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Lithia Motors from $315.00 to $375.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Finally, Stephens assumed coverage on Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $360.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $337.70.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 0.5 %

LAD stock opened at $313.88 on Friday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $231.36 and a 52 week high of $331.96. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $296.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $273.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. The company has a market cap of $8.60 billion, a PE ratio of 9.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.64.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $7.87 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.09 by $0.78. The company had revenue of $9.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.29 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.52% and a return on equity of 13.84%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $10.91 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 28.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is presently 6.26%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.65, for a total transaction of $88,632.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at $556,707.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.65, for a total value of $88,632.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at $556,707.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total transaction of $2,973,697.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 35,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,754,677.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 23,021 shares of company stock worth $6,534,617. Insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors 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.