New York State Common Retirement Fund Sells 1,961 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

New York State Common Retirement Fund reduced its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 75,631 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,961 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $24,904,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Xponance Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 3,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,150,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 32.0% during the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.3% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 17,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,054,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.5% during the third quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 11,886 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,510,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 2.2% during the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $918,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares in the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

LAD opened at $262.72 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $7.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.76, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $283.22 and a 200-day moving average price of $283.67. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a twelve month low of $206.69 and a twelve month high of $331.96.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The company reported $6.11 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.85 by ($1.74). The business had revenue of $8.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.58 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 15.59% and a net margin of 2.87%. Lithia Motors’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $8.44 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.78 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.53 dividend. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.81%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 5.90%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 135 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.84, for a total value of $40,208.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,662 shares in the company, valued at $495,010.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on LAD shares. Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $297.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $280.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $334.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Finally, Craig Hallum decreased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $310.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $320.82.

Lithia Motors Company 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.