Norges Bank Invests $152.75 Million in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Norges Bank bought a new stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 427,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $152,752,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.60% of Lithia Motors at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 69.9% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its position in Lithia Motors by 33.9% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 1,420.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 152 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 30.5% in 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 during the last quarter.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total transaction of $126,054.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $645,786.90. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total value of $154,864.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,605 shares in the company, valued at $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 90 days, insiders sold 1,246 shares of company stock valued at $433,724. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:LAD opened at $293.24 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $339.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $343.49. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.00 and a 1 year high of $405.68. 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 company has a market capitalization of $7.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.88, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released 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, research analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on LAD shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Lithia Motors from $420.00 to $360.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $365.91.

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.