Whalen Wealth Management Inc. Invests $248,000 in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Whalen Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $248,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter worth about $46,505,000. Verition Fund Management LLC boosted its position in Lithia Motors by 1,960.2% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 126,909 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,311,000 after buying an additional 120,749 shares in the last quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 5,233.4% during the third quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 107,629 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,187,000 after buying an additional 105,611 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 12.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 753,067 shares of the company’s stock worth $239,204,000 after buying an additional 85,579 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,071,000.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Bryan B. Deboer sold 15,846 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $386.72, for a total transaction of $6,127,965.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 207,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $80,408,369.28. This represents a 7.08 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 242 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $382.86, for a total value of $92,652.12. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,729 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $661,964.94. The trade was a 12.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,770 shares of company stock worth $15,103,607 in the last quarter. 1.79% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

Shares of Lithia Motors stock opened at $345.47 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $9.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.79, a PEG ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 1.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $366.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $322.00. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a 1-year low of $243.00 and a 1-year high of $405.67.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.60 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $9.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.95% and a net margin of 2.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $9.25 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.25 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley raised Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Benchmark began coverage on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $400.00 price objective for the company. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $405.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $357.40.

Lithia Motors 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.