Lithia Motors, Inc. Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.55 (NYSE:LAD)

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, February 11th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a dividend of 0.55 per share on Friday, March 20th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th.

Lithia Motors has raised its dividend payment by an average of 0.1%per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 16 consecutive years. Lithia Motors has a payout ratio of 5.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Lithia Motors to earn $40.30 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 5.5%.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $319.62 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $334.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $320.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.25 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. Lithia Motors has a 52 week low of $262.10 and a 52 week high of $405.14.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $6.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.17 by ($1.43). Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 13.42%. The firm had revenue of $9.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $7.79 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 75 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total value of $27,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 1,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $651,600. This represents a 3.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.87% 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 company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,487,000 after buying an additional 1,032 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 67.6% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 113,346 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,272,000 after purchasing an additional 45,716 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 93,170 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,349,000 after purchasing an additional 13,407 shares during the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL purchased a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the 2nd quarter worth $223,000. Finally, Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 9.6% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 3,990 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,348,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares during the last quarter.

About Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company’s core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.