Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Stock Price Target Cut by JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its price objective dropped by equities research analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $340.00 to $320.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.‘s price target indicates a potential upside of 10.22% from the company’s previous close.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently weighed in on LAD. UBS Group cut Lithia Motors from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $370.00 to $440.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $358.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Benchmark upped their price target on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on Lithia Motors from $455.00 to $409.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $413.10.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 4.2%

Shares of LAD traded down $12.67 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $290.33. 171,237 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 308,714. Lithia Motors has a 12 month low of $239.78 and a 12 month high of $439.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $355.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $311.88. The company has a market capitalization of $6.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.27.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.73 by $1.30. The company had revenue of $9.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.64 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 12.16%. Lithia Motors’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $10.24 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Lithia Motors will post 36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Stacy Congdon sold 75 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $370.73, for a total value of $27,804.75. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 2,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $852,679. This trade represents a 3.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors in the second quarter worth about $696,482,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,389,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $347,074,000 after acquiring an additional 43,087 shares in the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 33.6% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 742,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,814,000 after acquiring an additional 186,628 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 10.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 229,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $76,119,000 after purchasing an additional 21,806 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Madison Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the second quarter worth approximately $66,988,000.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc, doing business as Lithia & Driveway (NYSE:LAD), is an automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised dealerships and other vehicle-sales businesses. The company sells new and used vehicles from a broad range of automobile manufacturers, including domestic, import and luxury brands.

In addition to vehicle sales, Lithia & Driveway provides automotive financing and insurance products, maintenance and repair services, replacement parts, collision services and other related offerings.