Millennium Management LLC Has $3.35 Million Position in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Millennium Management LLC cut its holdings in Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 96.6% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 9,367 shares of the company’s stock after selling 269,477 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC’s holdings in Lithia Motors were worth $3,348,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LAD. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at $152,752,000. Egerton Capital UK LLP bought a new position in Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at about $113,250,000. Madison Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Lithia Motors in the fourth quarter valued at about $91,190,000. Advent International L.P. boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 52.9% in the fourth quarter. Advent International L.P. now owns 217,151 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,616,000 after acquiring an additional 75,151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Driehaus Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 91.1% in the fourth quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC now owns 142,124 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,799,000 after acquiring an additional 67,769 shares during the last quarter.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Guggenheim decreased their price target on Lithia Motors from $417.00 to $356.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Benchmark reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $400.00 price target on shares of Lithia Motors in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Citigroup upgraded Lithia Motors from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $415.00 to $375.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Lithia Motors from $385.00 to $328.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on Lithia Motors from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $361.20.

Lithia Motors Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE LAD opened at $317.23 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $8.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.69, a P/E/G ratio of 4.65 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.22, a current ratio of 1.19 and a quick ratio of 0.28. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $299.38 and its 200-day moving average is $336.28. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a one year low of $243.04 and a one year high of $405.68.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $7.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.77 by ($0.11). Lithia Motors had a net margin of 2.21% and a return on equity of 12.43%. The firm had revenue of $9.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.11 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 34.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.55 per share. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $2.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.69%. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is 6.93%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Shauna Mcintyre sold 337 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $295.94, for a total transaction of $99,731.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $482,974.08. The trade was a 17.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Congdon Stacy Loretz sold 270 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $298.80, for a total value of $80,676.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $362,444.40. This represents a 18.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 855 shares of company stock valued at $252,536 in the last 90 days. 0.87% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.