Leuthold Group LLC Has $3.40 Million Position in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Leuthold Group LLC trimmed its holdings in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 9.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 85,274 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 8,978 shares during the quarter. Leuthold Group LLC’s holdings in LKQ were worth $3,404,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new stake in LKQ during the second quarter worth $33,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in shares of LKQ by 94.2% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,010 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC boosted its holdings in LKQ by 33.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise grew its stake in LKQ by 29.8% in the 2nd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 1,211 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in LKQ during the 1st quarter valued at $56,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

LKQ Price Performance

LKQ stock opened at $37.75 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.86. The stock has a market cap of $10.07 billion, a PE ratio of 12.19 and a beta of 1.28. LKQ Co. has a one year low of $35.57 and a one year high of $53.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.75 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.01. LKQ had a net margin of 5.03% and a return on equity of 15.33%. The company had revenue of $3.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that LKQ Co. will post 3.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.18%. LKQ’s payout ratio is 38.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on LKQ. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on LKQ from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a research report on Friday. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $59.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of LKQ from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.80.

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.