JPMorgan Chase & Co. Boosts Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Price Target to $375.00

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its target price hoisted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $315.00 to $375.00 in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim upgraded Lithia Motors from a neutral rating to a buy rating and set a $338.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, August 9th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com downgraded Lithia Motors from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $266.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $326.00.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

LAD stock opened at $269.88 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $7.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.97, a P/E/G ratio of 0.27 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $275.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $271.55. Lithia Motors has a 1 year low of $231.36 and a 1 year high of $331.96.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $7.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $10.91 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors will post 28.89 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. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.79%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 6.26%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 1,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $556,707.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 11,938 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.86, for a total transaction of $3,472,286.68. Following the transaction, the director now owns 46,129 shares in the company, valued at $13,417,080.94. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $289.65, for a total value of $88,632.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $556,707.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.2% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 119,963 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,285,000 after acquiring an additional 2,638 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its position in Lithia Motors by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 3,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $975,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Lithia Motors by 23.8% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 8,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,217,000 after purchasing an additional 1,688 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 257.0% during the second quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 21,493 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,426,000 after buying an additional 15,473 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Scientech Research LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 41.6% in the second quarter. Scientech Research LLC now owns 1,364 shares of the company’s stock valued at $344,000 after buying an additional 401 shares in the last quarter.

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.