Royal Bank of Canada Has $21.60 Million Stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Royal Bank of Canada increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 1.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 86,520 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,414 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned about 0.38% of Lithia Motors worth $21,604,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 1,062.8% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 11,070 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,679,000 after purchasing an additional 10,118 shares during the period. Life Cycle Investment Partners Ltd bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $58,409,000. Bridges Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. Bridges Investment Management Inc. now owns 284,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,490,000 after acquiring an additional 21,168 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its position in Lithia Motors by 140.7% in the 4th quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 11,396 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,787,000 after purchasing an additional 6,661 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 48.8% in the 4th quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 115,725 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,459,000 after buying an additional 37,938 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LAD has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $370.00 to $360.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 1st. Benchmark upped their target price on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $365.00 to $455.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Lithia Motors from $325.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $425.20.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 165 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.64, for a total transaction of $50,430.60. Following the sale, the director owned 1,681 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $513,780.84. This represents a 8.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total transaction of $83,329.29. Following the transaction, the director owned 760 shares in the company, valued at $213,233.20. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 782 shares of company stock worth $229,572 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 0.8%

NYSE LAD opened at $368.16 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $8.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.00, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $319.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $296.58. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $239.78 and a 12 month high of $439.49.

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. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.16% and a net margin of 1.88%.The firm had revenue of $9.79 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.64 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $10.24 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is 9.29%.

Lithia Motors announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, May 26th that authorizes the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

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.