Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) has been under scrutiny lately following the recent moves made by Clearbridge Investments LLC. The investment firm trimmed its holdings in LAD by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This is just one of many changes that Lithia Motors has gone through recently.
Despite this setback, Lithia Motors announced a quarterly dividend increase from $0.42 to $0.50 per share which will be paid on May 26th to shareholders of record as of May 12th . This is good news for investors who have had doubts about their investments since Clearbridge’s decision to sell its shares in the company.
In addition, insiders George N. Hines and Shauna McIntyre sold their shares in transactions that were disclosed to the SEC earlier this year. Hines sold nearly $327,000 worth of shares while McIntyre sold over $43,000 worth of her own shares.
While these sales may indicate some uncertainty within Lithia Motors, they are not uncommon within any publicly traded company and do not necessarily reflect long-term trends or outlooks for the business.
It remains to be seen what other changes may be in store for Lithia Motors in the coming months but it is clear that both investors and industry analysts are closely watching developments as they unfold.
As always with investment decisions, due diligence is necessary to make informed choices and weigh up risk versus reward before investing any capital into a company such as Lithia Motors.
Lithia Motors Sees Boost in Holdings and Mixed Reviews from Analysts
Lithia Motors, a leading American automotive retailer, has seen an impressive boost in its holdings recently. According to a recent report, several hedge funds have modified their holdings of the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position by 405.9% and Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its position by 129.6%, among others.
In addition to this, the company has received mixed reports from analysts. While StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Lithia Motors with a “hold” rating, TheStreet upgraded the stock from a “c+” rating to a “b-“. Guggenheim dropped their price target but kept a “buy” rating for the company.
Recently, Lithia Motors declared a quarterly dividend which represents an increase from its previous quarterly dividend. Shareholders of record will be given a $0.50 dividend and this represents an annualized dividend of $2.00 and a yield of 0.85%.
The current state of LAD stock is opening at $236.24 with market capitalization worth more than $6.50 billion at the time of writing. The company’s P/E ratio stands at 5.79 with a PEG ratio of 2.10 and beta standing at 1.38.
According to Bloomberg.com, the average rating for LAD stock presently stands at “Hold” while the average target price is $300.56.
Despite missing consensus estimates on earnings last quarter, Lithia Motors continues to perform well with revenue up by 4% compared to the same quarter last year.
Overall, Lithia Motors appears poised for success as it continues to receive attention from institutional investors and analysts alike while also increasing dividends for shareholders’ benefits amidst financial reports reflecting steady growth for 2021 fiscal year projections which are predicted based upon industry trends across major players in vehicle dealerships worldwide driving mass customer attraction towards them likely translating into higher foot traffic volumes sustained profitability.
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