Lithia Motors (LAD) Expected to Announce Quarterly Earnings on Wednesday

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) is expected to announce its earnings results before the market opens on Wednesday, April 23rd. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $7.71 per share and revenue of $9.19 billion for the quarter. Investors that are interested in registering for the company’s conference call can do so using this link.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $7.79 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.33 by $0.46. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.43% and a net margin of 2.21%. On average, analysts expect Lithia Motors to post $34 EPS for the current fiscal year and $40 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE LAD opened at $288.27 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $314.33 and its 200 day moving average is $341.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.58 billion, a PE ratio of 9.71, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.61. Lithia Motors has a twelve month low of $243.00 and a twelve month high of $405.68.

Lithia Motors Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.74%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Gary M. Glandon sold 325 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $387.86, for a total value of $126,054.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,665 shares in the company, valued at $645,786.90. This represents a 16.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO Adam Chamberlain sold 403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $384.28, for a total value of $154,864.84. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 2,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,001,049.40. This trade represents a 13.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,246 shares of company stock worth $433,724. 0.87% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $400.00 price objective on shares of Lithia Motors in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com raised Lithia Motors from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Lithia Motors from $420.00 to $360.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $346.00 to $397.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $365.91.

Lithia Motors Company 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.