LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the five analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $52.60.

A number of analysts have commented on LKQ shares. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on LKQ from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on LKQ from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. StockNews.com cut shares of LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday.

LKQ Stock Performance

Shares of LKQ opened at $40.49 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $10.53 billion, a PE ratio of 15.11 and a beta of 1.29. LKQ has a 12 month low of $35.56 and a 12 month high of $53.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $37.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.76.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The auto parts company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.42 billion. LKQ had a net margin of 4.90% and a return on equity of 15.15%. Equities research analysts predict that LKQ will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.96%. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.14, for a total transaction of $180,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 369,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,352,356.68. This represents a 1.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 20,000 shares of company stock worth $781,500. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LKQ

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LKQ in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in LKQ by 81.0% in the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 742 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in LKQ by 94.2% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,010 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in shares of LKQ by 31.2% during the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,256 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of LKQ in the third quarter valued at about $57,000. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About LKQ

LKQ Corporation engages in the distribution of replacement parts, components, and systems used in the repair and maintenance of vehicles and specialty vehicle aftermarket products and accessories. It operates through four segments: Wholesale-North America, Europe, Specialty, and Self Service. The company distributes bumper covers, automotive body panels, and lights, as well as mechanical automotive parts and accessories; salvage products, including mechanical and collision parts comprising engines; transmissions; door assemblies; sheet metal products, such as trunk lids, fenders, and hoods; lights and bumper assemblies; scrap metal and other materials to metals recyclers; and brake pads, discs and sensors, clutches, steering and suspension products, filters, and oil and automotive fluids, as well as electrical products, including spark plugs and batteries.