Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 28th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.23 by $0.05, MarketWatch Earnings reports. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.26% and a return on equity of 21.66%. The firm had revenue of $2.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. Lithia Motors updated its FY17 guidance to $8.35-8.50 EPS.
Shares of Lithia Motors (LAD) traded up 1.58% on Wednesday, reaching $104.69. 234,550 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged. The firm has a market cap of $2.63 billion, a PE ratio of 12.62 and a beta of 1.73. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $95.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.93. Lithia Motors has a one year low of $75.85 and a one year high of $109.42.
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 25th. Investors of record on Friday, August 11th will be paid a $0.27 dividend. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.03%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 9th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.01%.
A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on LAD. Jefferies Group LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $125.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $116.00 price target (up from $106.00) on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Seaport Global Securities initiated coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, June 14th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. BidaskClub raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 5th. Finally, Zacks Investment Research downgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. The stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $109.17.
In related news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 316 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.19, for a total transaction of $30,712.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 113,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,066,733.73. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan O. Cain sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.64, for a total value of $105,640.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 12,242 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,293,244.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 209,296 shares of company stock worth $20,951,694 in the last 90 days. 7.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 4.9% in the second quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 334,858 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,553,000 after buying an additional 15,565 shares during the period. Burney Co. bought a new stake in Lithia Motors during the second quarter valued at approximately $354,000. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 0.6% in the second quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 13,096 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,234,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 3.6% in the second quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 39,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,750,000 after buying an additional 1,400 shares during the period. Finally, Commerce Bank raised its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.8% in the second quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 8,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $792,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.34% of the company’s stock.
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About Lithia Motors
Lithia Motors, Inc is an operator of automotive franchises and a retailer of new and used vehicles and related services. As of February 28, 2017, it offered 30 brands of new vehicles and all brands of used vehicles in 154 stores in the United States and online at Lithia.com, DCHauto.com and CarboneCars.com.
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