Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAR) Shares Gap Up Following Analyst Upgrade

Lithium Americas (Argentina) Corp. (NYSE:LAR) gapped up prior to trading on Monday after Scotiabank upgraded the stock from a sector perform rating to a sector outperform rating. The stock had previously closed at $6.98, but opened at $7.42. Scotiabank now has a $7.75 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $4.25. Lithium Americas (Argentina) shares last traded at $7.81, with a volume of 1,355,548 shares changing hands.

LAR has been the topic of a number of other research reports. National Bankshares raised their price target on Lithium Americas (Argentina) from $4.75 to $6.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) from $6.00 to $8.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) in a report on Wednesday, December 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $6.69.

Institutional Trading of Lithium Americas (Argentina)

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its position in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 2.3% during the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 128,053 shares of the company’s stock worth $428,000 after buying an additional 2,940 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its position in Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 3.0% during the second quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 103,636 shares of the company’s stock valued at $216,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its position in Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 14.1% during the second quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 26,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 3,214 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 45.3% during the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,388 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 3,552 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its position in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 54,020 shares of the company’s stock worth $112,000 after acquiring an additional 3,575 shares in the last quarter. 49.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lithium Americas (Argentina) Trading Up 5.4%

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.19 billion and a P/E ratio of -14.72. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $5.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $3.99.

Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAR) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 10th. The company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.01) by ($0.01). Research analysts forecast that Lithium Americas will post -0.05 earnings per share for the current year.

About Lithium Americas (Argentina)

Lithium Americas (Argentina) is a subsidiary of Lithium Americas Corp. focused on the exploration, development and production of lithium brine resources in the Jujuy province of northwest Argentina. The company’s principal asset is the Cauchari-Olaroz project, situated within the Lithium Triangle, one of the world’s richest regions for lithium-bearing brines. Through its Argentine operations, Lithium Americas aims to supply battery-grade lithium carbonate critical to electric vehicle and energy-storage markets.

The Cauchari-Olaroz project encompasses concessions on the Salar de Cauchari and Salar de Olaroz salt flats, where detailed drilling programs and pilot‐scale evaporation ponds have demonstrated favorable lithium concentrations.