Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB Sells 133 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB trimmed its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 19.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 550 shares of the company’s stock after selling 133 shares during the quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $197,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Lithia Motors during the third quarter valued at about $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 69.9% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 30.5% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 49.3% in the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 23.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 4.6 %

NYSE:LAD opened at $385.63 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $363.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $333.72. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52-week low of $243.00 and a 52-week high of $405.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.18. The company has a market cap of $10.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.16, a P/E/G ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 1.67.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%. On average, analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.23 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 11,627 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $390.00, for a total value of $4,534,530.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 181,187 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $70,662,930. This represents a 6.03 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Tina Miller sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $392.72, for a total value of $392,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 10,403 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,085,466.16. This trade represents a 8.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,611 shares of company stock valued at $7,716,702 in the last 90 days. 1.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LAD has been the topic of several analyst reports. Benchmark initiated coverage on Lithia Motors in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective on the stock. Stephens upped their price objective on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $343.00 to $346.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Guggenheim increased their price target on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $357.40.

Lithia Motors Company 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. Its Financing Operations segment provides financing to customers buying and leasing retail vehicles.