SVB Wealth LLC Invests $249,000 in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $249,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its position in Lithia Motors by 33.9% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Lithia Motors by 30.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167 shares of the company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its position in Lithia Motors by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 863 shares of the company’s stock worth $308,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp raised its position in Lithia Motors by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,911 shares of the company’s stock worth $607,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Lithia Motors by 69.9% in the 4th 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.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total transaction of $126,054.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at $645,786.90. This represents a 16.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the 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 sale, the chief operating officer now owns 2,605 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,001,049.40. The trade was a 13.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

LAD stock opened at $316.15 on Thursday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1 year low of $243.00 and a 1 year high of $405.67. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $358.44 and a 200 day moving average of $341.38. The company has a market cap of $8.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.65, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.28.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.67%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is 7.14%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LAD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Guggenheim boosted 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. 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, Lithia Motors currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $371.36.

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.