Benchmark Reaffirms Buy Rating for Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD)

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by Benchmark in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $400.00 price target on the stock. Benchmark’s target price indicates a potential upside of 9.44% from the company’s previous close.

LAD has been the subject of several other research reports. StockNews.com raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $371.36.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 2.5 %

Lithia Motors stock opened at $365.49 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $363.12 and its 200 day moving average is $337.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.74 billion, a PE ratio of 12.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.83 and a beta of 1.67. Lithia Motors has a one year low of $243.00 and a one year high of $405.67.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its earnings results 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 12.43% and a net margin of 2.21%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 6,742 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total value of $2,696,800.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 174,445 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,778,000. This represents a 3.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total transaction of $154,864.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,001,049.40. This trade represents a 13.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 20,097 shares of company stock valued at $7,904,969. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Versor Investments LP boosted its position in Lithia Motors by 7.0% during the third quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 856 shares of the company’s stock worth $272,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 259,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $82,560,000 after purchasing an additional 37,677 shares during the last quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at $731,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors in the 3rd quarter valued at about $248,000. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 95,899 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,585,000 after buying an additional 2,261 shares during the period.

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. Its Financing Operations segment provides financing to customers buying and leasing retail vehicles.