LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) Shares Sold by Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its position in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 56,171 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 587 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in LKQ were worth $2,064,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LKQ by 81.0% during the fourth quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 742 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA raised its stake 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 valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in shares of LKQ during the third quarter valued at about $57,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its stake in shares of LKQ by 618.0% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,673 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 1,440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of LKQ during the third quarter valued at about $81,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

LKQ Price Performance

Shares of LKQ stock opened at $43.18 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $38.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.92. LKQ Co. has a 52 week low of $35.56 and a 52 week high of $53.68. The stock has a market cap of $11.19 billion, a PE ratio of 16.48 and a beta of 1.27.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The auto parts company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.04. LKQ had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 14.93%. The firm had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.42 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that LKQ Co. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. LKQ’s payout ratio is presently 45.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on LKQ. StockNews.com cut shares of LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 1st. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, LKQ has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $52.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LKQ news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 15,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.32, for a total transaction of $634,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 336,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,225,233.20. The trade was a 4.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 35,000 shares of company stock worth $1,416,300. Company insiders own 0.45% of the company’s stock.

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.