Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Given New $360.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its price target reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $420.00 to $360.00 in a research note released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

LAD has been the topic of several other research reports. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of 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 raised shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $365.91.

Lithia Motors Stock Performance

NYSE:LAD opened at $295.60 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.77 billion, a PE ratio of 9.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.69. Lithia Motors has a twelve month low of $243.00 and a twelve month high of $405.68. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $341.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $342.10.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. On average, analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.72%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 7.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at $645,786.90. The trade was a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 248 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $290.84, for a total transaction of $72,128.32. Following the transaction, 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. Over the last three months, insiders sold 1,246 shares of company stock worth $433,724. 0.87% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 10,528 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,763,000 after acquiring an additional 930 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 8.2% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 844 shares of the company’s stock worth $302,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at $5,877,000. Forum Financial Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter valued at about $202,000. Finally, Peak Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the fourth quarter worth about $874,000.

About Lithia Motors

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.