California First Leasing Corp Boosts Holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

California First Leasing Corp boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 25.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,779 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,975 shares during the period. Lithia Motors accounts for 1.7% of California First Leasing Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. California First Leasing Corp’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $3,220,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Xponance Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,492 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,150,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 32.0% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.3% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,113 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,054,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.5% in the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 11,886 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,510,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.2% in the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,109 shares of the company’s stock worth $918,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on LAD. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $400.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $290.00 to $248.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $220.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $334.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $320.82.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 135 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.84, for a total value of $40,208.40. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,662 shares in the company, valued at $495,010.08. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

LAD stock traded up $4.99 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $262.72. 399,219 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 224,527. The firm has a market cap of $7.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.76, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $283.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $283.67. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $206.69 and a 1-year high of $331.96.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $6.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.85 by ($1.74). Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.87% and a return on equity of 15.59%. The firm had revenue of $8.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $8.44 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 22.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.78 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.81%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 6.26%.

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.