Quantinno Capital Management LP Has $3.85 Million Position in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Quantinno Capital Management LP cut its stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 44.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,402 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,115 shares during the quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $3,846,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of LAD. Clearstead Advisors LLC increased its stake in Lithia Motors by 111.4% in the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Quarry LP grew its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 101.9% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 109 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 68.0% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

LAD opened at $374.40 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $322.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $297.42. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1 year low of $239.78 and a 1 year high of $439.49. The company has a market capitalization of $8.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.42, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.21.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.73 by $1.30. The company had revenue of $9.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.64 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.16% and a net margin of 1.88%.Lithia Motors’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $10.24 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 35.26 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 7th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.7%. This is a boost from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is 7.56%.

Lithia Motors declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, May 26th that permits the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 7.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on LAD shares. Zacks Research upgraded Lithia Motors from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lithia Motors from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $306.00 to $395.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $490.00 target price on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, August 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $425.20.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 165 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.64, for a total transaction of $50,430.60. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,681 shares in the company, valued at $513,780.84. The trade was a 8.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard J. Bailey, Jr. sold 297 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $280.57, for a total value of $83,329.29. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 760 shares in the company, valued at $213,233.20. The trade was a 28.10% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 782 shares of company stock valued at $229,572 in the last ninety days. 1.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.