Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Stock Price Up 6.8% – Still a Buy?

Posted by Francis Steltz on Oct 17th, 2026

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD – Get Free Report)’s share price was up 6.8% on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $302.23 and last traded at $300.6690. Approximately 36,859 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 306,743 shares. The stock had previously closed at $281.49.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LAD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Lithia Motors from $358.00 to $310.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Lithia Motors from $340.00 to $320.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $350.00 to $417.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Lithia Motors from $306.00 to $395.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Lithia Motors from $440.00 to $335.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $402.60.

View Our Latest Analysis on Lithia Motors

Lithia Motors Trading Down 0.2%

The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $339.09 and a 200 day simple moving average of $313.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a current ratio of 1.00. The company has a market capitalization of $6.48 billion, a PE ratio of 9.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.27.

Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD – Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $10.03 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.73 by $1.30. The business had revenue of $9.79 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.64 billion. Lithia Motors had a return on equity of 12.16% and a net margin of 1.88%. The business’s revenue was up 2.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $10.24 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Lithia Motors, Inc. will post 35.70 earnings per share for the current year.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 21st. Investors of record on Friday, August 7th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 7th. This is a positive change from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. Lithia Motors’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lithia Motors news, Director Stacy Congdon sold 75 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $370.73, for a total value of $27,804.75. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,300 shares in the company, valued at approximately $852,679. This trade represents a 3.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 1.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lithia Motors

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lithia Motors in the second quarter valued at about $696,482,000. Madison Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors during the 2nd quarter valued at about $66,988,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in Lithia Motors during the 2nd quarter valued at about $63,015,000. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Lithia Motors by 33.6% in the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 742,677 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,814,000 after acquiring an additional 186,628 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in Lithia Motors in the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,718,000.

About Lithia Motors

(Get Free Report)

Lithia Motors, Inc, doing business as Lithia & Driveway (NYSE:LAD), is an automotive retailer that operates a network of franchised dealerships and other vehicle-sales businesses. The company sells new and used vehicles from a broad range of automobile manufacturers, including domestic, import and luxury brands.

In addition to vehicle sales, Lithia & Driveway provides automotive financing and insurance products, maintenance and repair services, replacement parts, collision services and other related offerings.