Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. Has $65.48 Million Holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 7.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 206,145 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,721 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $65,480,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Versor Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 7.0% during the 3rd quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 856 shares of the company’s stock valued at $272,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the second quarter worth $607,000. Comerica Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 89.0% during the 1st quarter. Comerica Bank now owns 29,473 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,867,000 after buying an additional 13,875 shares during the period. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. grew its stake in Lithia Motors by 22.9% in the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 70,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,774,000 after buying an additional 13,126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bridges Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 118.9% in the 2nd quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 160,860 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,609,000 after acquiring an additional 87,362 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $386.16 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $10.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.48 and a beta of 1.63. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $336.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $292.25. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $243.00 and a twelve month high of $405.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.18.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.60 by $0.61. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%. The company had revenue of $9.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.46 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $9.25 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In related news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 207,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $80,408,369.28. This trade represents a 7.08 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Tina Miller sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $392.72, for a total transaction of $392,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 10,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,085,466.16. This trade represents a 8.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 58,067 shares of company stock valued at $20,933,294. 1.79% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Stephens raised their price target on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. StockNews.com raised Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $357.60.

Lithia Motors 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.