Lithium Americas (NYSE:LAC) Trading Up 3.2% – Here’s Why

Shares of Lithium Americas Corp. (NYSE:LAC) were up 3.2% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $5.11 and last traded at $5.0260. Approximately 11,434,899 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 30% from the average daily volume of 16,254,129 shares. The stock had previously closed at $4.87.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on LAC. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on Lithium Americas from $8.00 to $7.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Cormark raised shares of Lithium Americas from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 21st. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $5.00 price target on shares of Lithium Americas in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Lithium Americas from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $5.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d-)” rating on shares of Lithium Americas in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $5.33.

Lithium Americas Stock Up 4.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a quick ratio of 3.77 and a current ratio of 3.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.00 and a beta of 1.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $5.98 and its 200 day moving average is $3.93.

Lithium Americas (NYSE:LAC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 13th. The company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.03. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lithium Americas Corp. will post -0.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Lithium Americas

In other Lithium Americas news, VP Alexi Illya Zawadzki sold 353,914 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.48, for a total transaction of $3,355,104.72. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 40,005 shares in the company, valued at approximately $379,247.40. This represents a 89.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Edward Grandy sold 6,183 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.50, for a total transaction of $27,823.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 135,466 shares in the company, valued at $609,597. This trade represents a 4.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 364,874 shares of company stock valued at $3,404,477 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.11% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Lithium Americas

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management bought a new position in Lithium Americas during the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Harbour Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Lithium Americas by 86.1% during the 2nd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 9,900 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 4,580 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP bought a new stake in Lithium Americas in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $28,000. Walleye Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lithium Americas in the second quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, IHT Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lithium Americas in the second quarter worth about $28,000.

About Lithium Americas

Lithium Americas Corp. engages in the exploration and development of lithium properties in the United States and Canada. It holds a 100% interest in the Thacker Pass project located in northern Nevada, as well as investments in exploration properties in the United States and Canada. Lithium Americas Corp.