Texas Permanent School Fund Corp Purchases 322 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Texas Permanent School Fund Corp raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 1.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,085 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 322 shares during the quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp owned 0.09% of Lithia Motors worth $7,246,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in LAD. Denali Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 5,050.0% in the fourth quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 103 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth $49,000. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 80.2% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 191 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter valued at $67,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the 1st quarter worth $114,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $270.00 to $280.00 in a research report on Monday, June 10th. Craig Hallum cut their price objective on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. 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, April 25th. Bank of America lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. 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. According to MarketBeat, Lithia Motors presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $319.45.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:LAD traded up $0.08 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $259.11. 8,370 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 236,128. The stock has a market cap of $7.10 billion, a PE ratio of 7.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 1.63. The business’s fifty day moving average is $257.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $278.65. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a one year low of $231.36 and a one year high of $331.96. 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 (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $6.11 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.85 by ($1.74). The company had revenue of $8.56 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.58 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.87% and a return on equity of 15.62%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $8.44 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 28.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.82%. This is a boost from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 9th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 6.26%.

Insider Transactions at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 138 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $254.42, for a total transaction of $35,109.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 2,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $566,847.76. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

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.