KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Makes New Investment in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 5,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,002,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LAD. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 69.9% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 146 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 1,420.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 152 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Lithia Motors by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LAD has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $420.00 to $360.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $365.91.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 3.8 %

Shares of LAD opened at $295.60 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.96, a PEG ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 52 week low of $243.00 and a 52 week high of $405.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $341.41 and a 200-day moving average of $342.10.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.72%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 270 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $298.80, for a total transaction of $80,676.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,213 shares in the company, valued at approximately $362,444.40. This trade represents a 18.21 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total transaction of $72,128.32. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,297 shares in the company, valued at approximately $377,219.48. This represents a 16.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,246 shares of company stock valued at $433,724 over the last 90 days. 0.87% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc operates as an automotive retailer worldwide. It operates in two segments, Vehicle Operations and Financing Operations. The company’s Vehicle Operations segment sells new and used vehicles; provides parts, repair, and maintenance services; vehicle finance; and insurance products. Its Financing Operations segment provides financing to customers buying and leasing retail vehicles.