Inspire Advisors LLC Acquires Shares of 772 Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Inspire Advisors LLC bought a new position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 772 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $245,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,700,893 shares of the company’s stock valued at $429,390,000 after acquiring an additional 217,867 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 25.0% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,016,520 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,621,000 after buying an additional 203,543 shares during the last quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Lithia Motors by 118.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,860 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,609,000 after buying an additional 87,362 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 413.6% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 65,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,450,000 after acquiring an additional 52,458 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 7.2% during the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 727,849 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,981,000 after acquiring an additional 48,938 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on LAD shares. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Guggenheim raised Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $338.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, August 9th. Stephens began coverage on Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $360.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Lithia Motors has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $337.70.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total transaction of $2,973,697.61. Following the completion of the sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Lithia Motors news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were 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 owns 35,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,754,677.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 11,938 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.86, for a total value of $3,472,286.68. Following the transaction, the director now owns 46,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,417,080.94. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 23,021 shares of company stock valued at $6,534,617. Corporate insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

NYSE LAD opened at $313.88 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $231.36 and a 12 month high of $331.96. The stock has a market cap of $8.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.27, a PEG ratio of 0.30 and a beta of 1.64. The company’s 50 day moving average is $296.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $273.72.

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

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

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

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.