Insider Selling: Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Director Sells $50,430.60 in Stock

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 165 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.64, for a total transaction of $50,430.60. Following the sale, the director owned 1,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $513,780.84. The trade was a 8.94% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Shauna Mcintyre also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, May 11th, Shauna Mcintyre sold 245 shares of Lithia Motors stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.64, for a total transaction of $72,186.80.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $313.47 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $7.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.26. The company’s 50 day moving average is $281.07 and its 200 day moving average is $298.85. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $239.78 and a twelve month high of $360.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $7.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.06 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $9.27 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.22 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 12.49%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $7.66 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.37 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is currently 8.01%.

Lithia Motors declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, May 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on LAD shares. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $326.00 to $365.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Wednesday, May 27th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $348.00 price target on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 30th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $368.11.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Norges Bank bought a new position in Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter worth approximately $125,214,000. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its position in Lithia Motors by 33.6% in the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 742,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,814,000 after acquiring an additional 186,628 shares during the period. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter valued at $58,409,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 8,474.0% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 107,690 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,789,000 after purchasing an additional 106,434 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 183.6% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 162,937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,149,000 after purchasing an additional 105,478 shares during the period.

About Lithia Motors

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.