-=Lithia Motors (LAD) reported earnings on Wed 24 Oct 2018 (b/o)

Lithia Motors beats by $0.30, misses on revs; guides FY18 EPS in-line, reaffirms FY18 revs guidance; same store comps +1%; increases share buyback authorization by $250 mln

• Reports Q3 (Sep) earnings of $2.83 per share, excluding non-recurring items, $0.30 better than the S&P Capital IQ Consensus of $2.53; revenues rose 15.4% year/year to $3.09 bln vs the $3.17 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.
  • Total same store sales increased 1%.
• Co issues guidance for FY18, sees EPS of approx $9.50 vs. $9.49 S&P Capital IQ Consensus; reaffirms FY18 revs of $11.75-12.25 bln vs. $12.04 bln S&P Capital IQ Consensus.
• Co increases its share repurchase authorization by an additional $250 mln, bringing total funds available for share repurchase to $268 mln.