5,320 Shares in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Bought by Forge First Asset Management Inc.

Forge First Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 5,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,901,000.

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

Lithia Motors Trading Down 0.4 %

Lithia Motors stock opened at $292.49 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.00 and a 52 week high of $405.67. The company has a market capitalization of $7.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $354.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $342.00.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.43% and a net margin of 2.21%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at $645,786.90. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total value of $154,864.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 2,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,001,049.40. This trade represents a 13.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.79% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on LAD. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on 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, Guggenheim lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $371.36.

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.