Holocene Advisors LP Acquires 9,265 Shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD)

Holocene Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) by 71.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,149 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,265 shares during the quarter. Holocene Advisors LP owned approximately 0.08% of Lithia Motors worth $7,035,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LAD. Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors during the 3rd quarter valued at $967,000. Concentric Capital Strategies LP purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors during the third quarter worth about $3,210,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. bought a new stake in Lithia Motors in the third quarter worth about $211,000. Paloma Partners Management Co purchased a new position in Lithia Motors in the third quarter valued at about $540,000. Finally, Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Lithia Motors by 523.0% during the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 1,981 shares of the company’s stock valued at $629,000 after acquiring an additional 1,663 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Trading Down 0.8 %

LAD opened at $384.33 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.18 and a quick ratio of 0.27. Lithia Motors, Inc. has a one year low of $243.00 and a one year high of $405.67. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.12, a PEG ratio of 6.36 and a beta of 1.65. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $343.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $295.63.

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

Lithia Motors Dividend Announcement

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Chris Holzshu sold 8,520 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $335.21, for a total transaction of $2,855,989.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 32,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,744,821.34. The trade was a 21.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Sidney B. Deboer sold 10,777 shares of Lithia Motors stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.93, for a total value of $2,973,697.61. Following the transaction, the director now owns 35,352 shares in the company, valued at $9,754,677.36. This trade represents a 23.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 58,067 shares of company stock valued at $20,933,294. Insiders own 1.79% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Stephens lifted their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $360.00 to $405.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Guggenheim upped their price target on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lithia Motors from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $225.00 to $310.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $280.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Lithia Motors from $299.00 to $343.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.