Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 66,234 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lessened its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 36.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 117,345 shares of the company’s stock after selling 66,234 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.44% of Lithia Motors worth $41,917,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 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 acquiring an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 863 shares of the company’s stock worth $308,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.6% during the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Isthmus Partners LLC raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 1,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $410,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have 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 for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised 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 note on Thursday, February 13th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 target price on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $365.91.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total value of $72,128.32. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,297 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $377,219.48. This represents a 16.05 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $645,786.90. This trade represents a 16.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,246 shares of company stock worth $433,724. Insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE LAD opened at $279.08 on Tuesday. 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 business’s 50 day moving average is $332.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $343.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.40, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.61.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, research analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.76%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

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.