Lithia Motors FY2025 EPS Forecast Boosted by Seaport Res Ptn

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) – Equities research analysts at Seaport Res Ptn increased their FY2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Lithia Motors in a research note issued to investors on Thursday, January 16th. Seaport Res Ptn analyst G. Chin now anticipates that the company will post earnings of $35.77 per share for the year, up from their prior estimate of $34.73. The consensus estimate for Lithia Motors’ current full-year earnings is $29.42 per share.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Lithia Motors from $405.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $343.00 to $346.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Benchmark began coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price target on the stock. Five equities 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.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $357.40.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE LAD opened at $351.33 on Monday. Lithia Motors has a 1 year low of $243.00 and a 1 year high of $405.67. The firm has a market cap of $9.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.99, a PEG ratio of 4.77 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $368.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $320.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.27.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.60 by $0.61. The company 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%. Lithia Motors’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $9.25 earnings per share.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 1,700,893 shares of the company’s stock worth $429,390,000 after acquiring an additional 217,867 shares during the last quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth about $46,505,000. Verition Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,960.2% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 126,909 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,311,000 after purchasing an additional 120,749 shares during the last quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 5,233.4% during the 3rd quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 107,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,187,000 after purchasing an additional 105,611 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in Lithia Motors by 12.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 753,067 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,204,000 after purchasing an additional 85,579 shares during the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $80,408,369.28. This trade represents a 7.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 32,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,744,821.34. The trade was a 21.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 47,290 shares of company stock valued at $17,959,596 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.24%.

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.