Amalgamated Bank Grows Position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Amalgamated Bank increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 16.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 20,759 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,992 shares during the period. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $6,836,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of LAD. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its position in Lithia Motors by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 3,062 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,008,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Lithia Motors by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 19,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,519,000 after acquiring an additional 2,686 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 148.1% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 10,604 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,492,000 after purchasing an additional 6,330 shares during the period. Investment House LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth $2,082,000. Finally, Truist Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 16,702 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,500,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on LAD. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, January 17th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $375.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Wednesday, February 14th. Craig Hallum reduced their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. One research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $318.55.

Lithia Motors Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of LAD stock opened at $253.48 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1 year low of $206.69 and a 1 year high of $331.96. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $279.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $283.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.59.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $6.11 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.85 by ($1.74). Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.87% and a return on equity of 15.62%. The company had revenue of $8.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $8.44 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 22.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 32.24 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This is a boost from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.84%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is currently 5.90%.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 138 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.42, for a total value of $35,109.96. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $566,847.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.