LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on LKQ. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $59.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of LKQ from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of LKQ from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, LKQ has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.00.

LKQ Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LKQ opened at $40.43 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.75. The company has a fifty day moving average of $41.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $44.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.79 billion, a PE ratio of 13.13 and a beta of 1.29. LKQ has a fifty-two week low of $35.57 and a fifty-two week high of $53.68.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The auto parts company reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.87 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 15.33% and a net margin of 5.03%. The business’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.09 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that LKQ will post 3.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Andrew C. Clarke acquired 7,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 26th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $39.70 per share, for a total transaction of $301,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,519 shares in the company, valued at $417,604.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Justin L. Jude bought 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was bought at an average price of $39.91 per share, with a total value of $99,775.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 207,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,281,923.65. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Andrew C. Clarke bought 7,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $39.70 per share, with a total value of $301,720.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 10,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $417,604.30. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders bought 12,600 shares of company stock worth $500,870. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of LKQ in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $159,324,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 552.8% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,236,158 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $51,412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,805 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 9.5% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,307,753 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $540,398,000 after purchasing an additional 977,585 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 7.9% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 11,944,496 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $496,772,000 after purchasing an additional 875,420 shares during the period. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 39.8% in the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 3,067,772 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $127,589,000 after purchasing an additional 873,665 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

LKQ Company Profile

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.