Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Shares Sold by Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC lowered its position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 79.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,351 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,210 shares during the period. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $429,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 83.6% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Lithia Motors by 23.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 12,500.0% in the second quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the second quarter valued at approximately $80,000.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other news, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $10,744,821.34. This trade represents a 21.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Tina Miller sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $392.72, for a total value of $392,720.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,403 shares in the company, valued at $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 quarter, insiders have sold 47,290 shares of company stock worth $17,959,596. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 3.7 %

Shares of LAD opened at $357.00 on Thursday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $243.00 and a fifty-two week high of $405.67. The company’s fifty day moving average is $356.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $304.20. The firm has a market cap of $9.51 billion, a PE ratio of 12.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.25 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $9.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $9.25 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.24%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $357.60.

About Lithia Motors

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.