Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAR) Trading 7.7% Higher – Still a Buy?

Lithium Americas (Argentina) Corp. (NYSE:LAR) shot up 7.7% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $7.39 and last traded at $7.6010. 945,215 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 73% from the average session volume of 3,450,890 shares. The stock had previously closed at $7.06.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Scotiabank upgraded Lithium Americas (Argentina) from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $4.25 to $7.75 in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $8.30 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 28th. National Bank Financial boosted their price target on shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) from $4.75 to $6.50 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) from $6.00 to $8.50 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $7.66.

Lithium Americas (Argentina) Trading Up 6.4%

The company has a 50-day moving average price of $7.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.22 billion and a P/E ratio of -15.99.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithium Americas (Argentina)

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LAR. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 2.3% in the third quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 128,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $428,000 after purchasing an additional 2,940 shares in the last quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 103,636 shares of the company’s stock worth $216,000 after purchasing an additional 3,000 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 14.1% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. now owns 26,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 3,214 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 45.3% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 11,388 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 3,552 shares during the period. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of Lithium Americas (Argentina) by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 54,020 shares of the company’s stock valued at $112,000 after buying an additional 3,575 shares during the period. 49.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Lithium Americas (Argentina)

Lithium Americas (Argentina) is a subsidiary of Lithium Americas Corp. focused on the exploration, development and production of lithium brine resources in the Jujuy province of northwest Argentina. The company’s principal asset is the Cauchari-Olaroz project, situated within the Lithium Triangle, one of the world’s richest regions for lithium-bearing brines. Through its Argentine operations, Lithium Americas aims to supply battery-grade lithium carbonate critical to electric vehicle and energy-storage markets.

The Cauchari-Olaroz project encompasses concessions on the Salar de Cauchari and Salar de Olaroz salt flats, where detailed drilling programs and pilot‐scale evaporation ponds have demonstrated favorable lithium concentrations.