Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Releases Earnings Results, Misses Expectations By $1.80 EPS

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $7.34 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $9.14 by ($1.80), Zacks reports. The business had revenue of $9.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.81 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.76% and a net margin of 2.18%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.66 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Lithia Motors’ conference call:

• Record quarter: Company reported record revenues of $9.3 billion and adjusted diluted EPS of $7.34, citing diversified operations and resilient execution despite weather and macro headwinds.
• Driveway Finance Corp. strength: DFC posted financing operations income of $21 million (up 71% YoY), record originations ($840M), a $5 billion portfolio and 18% penetration, positioning it toward the long‑term 20%+ target.
• After‑sales and used performance: After‑sales revenue and gross profit grew (revenues +3.8%, gross profit +5.7%, margins 58.7%), and same‑store used revenue rose 4.6% with sequential improvement in used GPU.
• Capital allocation: Management repurchased about 4% of outstanding shares (~$259–$300M this quarter) and remains biased toward buybacks while also pursuing disciplined acquisitions at attractive prices.
• Margin and new‑vehicle pressures: New vehicle revenue fell 7.1% (unit declines and GPU compression), and adjusted SG&A to gross rose to 71.5% YoY (though flat sequentially), highlighting near‑term profitability headwinds to address.

Lithia Motors Stock Up 7.6%

Shares of NYSE:LAD traded up $21.05 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $298.29. 140,542 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 314,662. The stock has a market cap of $6.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.29, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.22. Lithia Motors has a fifty-two week low of $239.78 and a fifty-two week high of $360.55. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $267.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $302.84. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.7%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 6.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LAD. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 13.9% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,474 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,487,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 67.6% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 113,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,272,000 after purchasing an additional 45,716 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 93,170 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,349,000 after purchasing an additional 13,407 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 16.2% during the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,430 shares of the company’s stock worth $821,000 after purchasing an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Lithia Motors during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $651,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Zacks Research raised Lithia Motors from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Barclays dropped their target price on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Lithia Motors from $335.00 to $320.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Lithia Motors from $355.00 to $293.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $361.00.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

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.