Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Sells 2,534 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 91.5% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 236 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,534 shares during the quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $69,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 118.1% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,841 shares of the company’s stock valued at $541,000 after acquiring an additional 997 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.5% during the first quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 2,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $711,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 780 shares of the company’s stock valued at $279,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in Lithia Motors by 50.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 12.1% during the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $346,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 337 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $295.94, for a total transaction of $99,731.78. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,632 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $482,974.08. The trade was a 17.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LAD. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $305.00 to $364.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $430.00 to $500.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 16th. Citigroup raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $415.00 to $375.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Guggenheim dropped their price objective on Lithia Motors from $417.00 to $356.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Lithia Motors in a research note on Tuesday, June 3rd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $340.00 target price for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $382.50.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LAD opened at $307.42 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $328.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $326.33. The firm has a market cap of $8.00 billion, a PE ratio of 9.69, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $247.01 and a 1-year high of $405.68.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $7.66 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.77 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $9.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.19 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.74% and a net margin of 2.30%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.11 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a dividend of $0.55 per share. This is a boost from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.72%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 6.93%.

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