Burney Co. Sells 207 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Burney Co. reduced its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 9.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,922 shares of the company’s stock after selling 207 shares during the period. Burney Co.’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $578,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. GAMMA Investing LLC bought a new stake in Lithia Motors during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Rise Advisors LLC increased its position in Lithia Motors by 80.2% in the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 191 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Kapitalo Investimentos Ltda bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter worth about $67,000. Mather Group LLC. acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the first quarter worth approximately $114,000. Finally, Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 5,785.7% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 412 shares of the company’s stock valued at $135,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares during the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LAD has been the topic of several research reports. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $280.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $300.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $266.00 to $302.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $313.90.

Insider Activity at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 306 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $289.65, for a total value of $88,632.90. Following the sale, the director now owns 1,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $556,707.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.79% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 1.8 %

LAD traded down $5.37 during trading on Friday, reaching $290.07. The company had a trading volume of 697,207 shares, compared to its average volume of 302,945. The company has a market cap of $7.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.57, a PEG ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 1.63. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 12 month low of $231.36 and a 12 month high of $331.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $257.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $273.75.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $7.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.09 by $0.78. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 13.81% and a net margin of 2.52%. The firm had revenue of $9.23 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.29 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $10.91 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 13.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 27.62 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.73%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 6.26%.

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.