Blueshift Asset Management LLC Buys New Position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Blueshift Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 608 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $217,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in Lithia Motors by 69.9% during 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. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 33.9% in the fourth 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. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,420.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 152 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted 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 worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Lithia Motors stock opened at $306.45 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $8.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.33, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $345.07 and its 200 day moving average is $341.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.00 and a 52-week high of $405.68.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.69%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 7.14%.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 270 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.80, for a total transaction of $80,676.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,213 shares in the company, valued at $362,444.40. The trade was a 18.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total transaction of $72,128.32. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,297 shares in the company, valued at $377,219.48. This trade represents a 16.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,246 shares of company stock valued at $433,724 over the last 90 days. 0.87% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on LAD shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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, February 19th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.