Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Invests $3.51 Million in Lithia Motors, Inc. $LAD

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 12,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,511,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 13.9% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 8,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,487,000 after purchasing an additional 1,032 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 67.6% during the first 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 in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 16.8% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 93,170 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,349,000 after buying an additional 13,407 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its holdings in Lithia Motors by 16.2% in the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,430 shares of the company’s stock valued at $821,000 after buying an additional 338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors in the second quarter valued at $651,000.

Lithia Motors Stock Down 1.0%

LAD opened at $366.72 on Tuesday. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a one year low of $239.78 and a one year high of $439.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 1.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.22. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $345.73 and its 200-day simple moving average is $301.93.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.73 by $1.30. The firm had revenue of $9.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.64 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.16% and a net margin of 1.88%.The business’s revenue was up 2.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $10.24 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 36 EPS for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 7th were issued a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 7th. This is an increase from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.8%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.29%.

Lithia Motors declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, May 26th that allows the company to buyback $500.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 7.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LAD has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Lithia Motors from $306.00 to $395.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $490.00 target price on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $365.00 to $455.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Benchmark upped their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $436.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 165 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.64, for a total transaction of $50,430.60. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,681 shares in the company, valued at approximately $513,780.84. This trade represents a 8.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

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.