Channing Capital Management LLC Has $12.06 Million Stock Position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Channing Capital Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LADFree Report) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,749 shares of the company’s stock after selling 439 shares during the quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Lithia Motors worth $12,063,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 69.9% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Lithia Motors by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Lithia Motors by 48.5% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 297 shares of the company’s stock worth $106,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on LAD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $371.36.

View Our Latest Research Report on Lithia Motors

Insider Activity

In other Lithia Motors news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total transaction of $126,054.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $645,786.90. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total transaction of $154,864.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 2,605 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,049.40. This trade represents a 13.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.79% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 3.6 %

LAD opened at $293.90 on Tuesday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $243.00 and a 1-year high of $405.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.73 billion, a PE ratio of 9.90, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $355.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $341.92.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LADGet Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is currently 7.14%.

Lithia Motors Profile

(Free Report)

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.

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Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD)

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