Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Wells Fargo & Company Analyst Says

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its price objective boosted by stock analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $346.00 to $397.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s price target would suggest a potential upside of 4.36% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on LAD. StockNews.com raised Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Lithia Motors from $405.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Stephens boosted their target price on Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Benchmark assumed coverage on Lithia Motors in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 target price on the stock. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $362.50.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 1.1 %

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $380.41 on Thursday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $363.40 and its 200-day moving average is $334.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.13 billion, a PE ratio of 12.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.90 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. Lithia Motors has a 12-month low of $243.00 and a 12-month high of $405.67.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors will post 29.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In other Lithia Motors news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 6,742 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $400.00, for a total value of $2,696,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 174,445 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $69,778,000. This represents a 3.72 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $382.86, for a total value of $92,652.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $661,964.94. This trade represents a 12.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 20,339 shares of company stock worth $7,997,621 in the last 90 days. 1.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 3,862 shares of the company’s stock valued at $975,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 4,051 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,287,000 after buying an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 1,657 shares of the company’s stock worth $526,000 after buying an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $327,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 46.2% in the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $604,000 after buying an additional 600 shares in the last quarter.

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