Bank of America Has Lowered Expectations for Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Stock Price

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) had its target price lowered by analysts at Bank of America from $335.00 to $320.00 in a report issued on Monday,MarketScreener reports. Bank of America‘s price objective suggests a potential upside of 16.11% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities analysts also recently commented on LAD. Citigroup cut their price objective on Lithia Motors from $366.00 to $326.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of Lithia Motors from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $335.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Zacks Research cut shares of Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Lithia Motors from $355.00 to $293.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $362.67.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

NYSE:LAD opened at $275.59 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.64, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.22. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $276.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $305.49. Lithia Motors has a 1 year low of $239.78 and a 1 year high of $360.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.26.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $6.74 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $8.09 by ($1.35). Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.76% and a net margin of 2.18%.The firm had revenue of $9.20 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.19 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $7.79 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that Lithia Motors will post 34.45 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. CoreCap Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Lithia Motors in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Lithia Motors in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Clearstead Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 111.4% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Advisors LLC now owns 93 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Finally, Parkside Financial Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in Lithia Motors by 75.0% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 105 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company’s core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.