Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Holdings Decreased by Values First Advisors Inc.

Values First Advisors Inc. lowered its stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 8.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,092 shares of the company’s stock after selling 198 shares during the quarter. Values First Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $748,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of LAD. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Lithia Motors during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 69.9% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Lithia Motors by 30.5% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 49.3% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Lithia Motors by 23.9% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LAD has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $405.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Stephens raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Benchmark assumed coverage on Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com raised Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $357.40.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

LAD opened at $385.63 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.16, a PEG ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 1.67. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $363.18 and a 200-day moving average of $333.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12-month low of $243.00 and a 12-month high of $405.67.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%. Equities analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $382.86, for a total value of $92,652.12. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $661,964.94. This represents a 12.28 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Tina Miller sold 1,000 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $392.72, for a total value of $392,720.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,085,466.16. This represents a 8.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 19,611 shares of company stock worth $7,716,702. 1.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.