Synovus Financial Corp Boosts Position in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Synovus Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 11.6% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 15,235 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after buying an additional 1,588 shares during the quarter. Synovus Financial Corp’s holdings in LKQ were worth $608,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of LKQ in the third quarter worth $25,000. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in shares of LKQ in the second quarter worth $33,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of LKQ by 94.2% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,010 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of LKQ by 33.5% in the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its holdings in shares of LKQ by 29.8% in the second quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 1,211 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LKQ Price Performance

LKQ stock opened at $36.61 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $38.44 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $40.24. LKQ Co. has a 12-month low of $35.57 and a 12-month high of $53.68. 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 company has a market cap of $9.52 billion, a PE ratio of 13.66 and a beta of 1.29.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.01. LKQ had a return on equity of 15.15% and a net margin of 4.90%. The firm had revenue of $3.58 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.65 billion. During the same quarter 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. As a group, research analysts predict that LKQ Co. will post 3.43 EPS for the current year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. LKQ’s payout ratio is 44.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on LKQ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on LKQ from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. StockNews.com upgraded LKQ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on LKQ from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on LKQ from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, LKQ has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $53.80.

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.