Citigroup Lowers Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Price Target to $366.00

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its target price dropped by investment analysts at Citigroup from $399.00 to $366.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 40.83% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Lithia Motors from $358.00 to $355.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Lithia Motors in a research note on Wednesday. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Barclays cut their price target on Lithia Motors from $390.00 to $380.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Lithia Motors from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $335.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $382.33.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 2.7%

Lithia Motors stock opened at $259.89 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.08 billion, a PE ratio of 8.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.20. The company’s 50-day moving average is $315.60 and its 200-day moving average is $319.48. Lithia Motors has a fifty-two week low of $256.98 and a fifty-two week high of $360.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.26.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $6.74 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.09 by ($1.35). Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.18% and a return on equity of 12.76%. The firm had revenue of $9.20 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $7.79 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In related news, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 75 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.00, for a total transaction of $27,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 1,810 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $651,600. This trade represents a 3.98% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.87% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAD. Abrams Capital Management L.P. increased its position in Lithia Motors by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Abrams Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,490,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $787,009,000 after buying an additional 45,856 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,346,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $447,583,000 after acquiring an additional 6,113 shares during the period. River Road Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 33.6% in the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 742,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,814,000 after acquiring an additional 186,628 shares in the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 5.9% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 612,377 shares of the company’s stock valued at $206,873,000 after acquiring an additional 33,966 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Lithia Motors by 2.5% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 479,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $162,022,000 after acquiring an additional 11,859 shares during the period.

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.