Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Position Increased by Venturi Wealth Management LLC

Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 4,888.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 848 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 831 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $269,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in LAD. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 83.6% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 12,500.0% during the second quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock worth $64,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Lithia Motors by 23.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new position in Lithia Motors in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $80,000.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Bank of America boosted their target price on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com raised Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Stephens increased their price objective on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $353.80.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total transaction of $6,127,965.12. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 207,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,408,369.28. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Lithia Motors news, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.21, for a total value of $2,855,989.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 32,054 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,744,821.34. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Monday, November 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total transaction of $6,127,965.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 207,924 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,408,369.28. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 47,081 shares of company stock worth $15,429,939 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $376.11 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $316.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $283.75. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.00 and a fifty-two week high of $388.36. The firm has a market cap of $10.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.84 and a beta of 1.63.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.60 by $0.61. The company had revenue of $9.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $9.25 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th 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 0.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.24%.

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.