Wells Fargo & Company Has Lowered Expectations for Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Stock Price

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its price objective reduced by equities researchers at Wells Fargo & Company from $358.00 to $355.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price objective indicates a potential upside of 12.44% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $410.00 to $390.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, October 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Evercore raised their price target on Lithia Motors from $440.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $385.00 to $399.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $390.40.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of LAD traded down $4.69 on Thursday, reaching $315.72. 21,992 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 263,970. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $334.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $320.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.21 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market cap of $7.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.16 and a beta of 1.20. Lithia Motors has a 12 month low of $262.10 and a 12 month high of $389.61.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $6.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.17 by ($1.43). The business had revenue of $9.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.19 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 13.42%. The business’s revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $7.79 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 75 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total value of $27,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,810 shares in the company, valued at $651,600. This represents a 3.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CoreCap Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 114.6% during the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 88 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 47 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,383.3% during the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 89 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in Lithia Motors during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000.

Key Headlines Impacting Lithia Motors

Here are the key news stories impacting Lithia Motors this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Company highlighted record full-year revenue, strength in aftersales and Driveway Finance improvements; management also disclosed $947M of share repurchases in 2025 and strategic acquisitions adding ~$2.4B of annual revenue — these are shareholder-friendly items that support longer-term cash generation and earnings capacity. Press Release / Slide Deck
• Positive Sentiment: Lithia announced a quarterly dividend of $0.55/share (record March 6, payable March 20), which adds steady income return and may support the share base. (Company announcement)
• Positive Sentiment: Driveway Finance produced record quarterly income ($23M) and reported a 15.0% penetration rate with strong average FICO — helps diversify and stabilize margins versus retail vehicle volatility. Press Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Top-line performance was broadly flat: Q4 revenue ~$9.20B was essentially in line with consensus (some outlets call it a slight beat, others a miss), showing modest sequential growth but limited same-store upside. MarketBeat Release
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/market commentary and valuation pieces are being published assessing the recent pullback and whether the stock pricing now reflects the company’s balance of acquisition-fueled growth vs. margin pressure. Yahoo Valuation Piece
• Negative Sentiment: Major negative: GAAP EPS of $6.74 missed consensus (~$8.10–$8.17), down from $7.79 a year ago — the EPS shortfall is the primary driver of the share decline as it raises near‑term earnings risk. Zacks: Missed EPS
• Negative Sentiment: Some outlets flagged misses or mixed signals on revenue/operational metrics and noted the YoY EPS decline — this drives analyst re‑ratings and short-term selling pressure while investors await management’s forward commentary. MSN Coverage

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company’s core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.