Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) Shares Sold by MetLife Investment Management LLC

MetLife Investment Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 4.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,828 shares of the company’s stock after selling 598 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned 0.05% of Lithia Motors worth $4,392,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LAD. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Lithia Motors by 5.9% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 15,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,580,000 after buying an additional 842 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 15,083 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,537,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Lithia Motors by 13.3% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 554 shares of the company’s stock valued at $167,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Lithia Motors in the 2nd quarter worth about $607,000. Finally, Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in Lithia Motors during the second quarter worth approximately $339,000.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

NYSE:LAD opened at $386.90 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a current ratio of 1.18. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $340.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $293.82. The stock has a market cap of $10.31 billion, a PE ratio of 13.20, a P/E/G ratio of 6.35 and a beta of 1.63. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a one year low of $243.00 and a one year high of $405.67.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The company reported $8.21 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $7.60 by $0.61. The business had revenue of $9.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.46 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.31% and a return on equity of 12.95%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $9.25 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 29.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.24%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lithia Motors

In other news, CFO Tina Miller sold 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $392.72, for a total transaction of $392,720.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 10,403 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,085,466.16. This represents a 8.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total transaction of $2,973,697.61. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 35,352 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,754,677.36. This trade represents a 23.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 58,067 shares of company stock valued at $20,933,294 over the last quarter. 1.79% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $375.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $357.60.

Lithia Motors Profile

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.