UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Boosts Stock Holdings in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its stake in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 24.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,556 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,434 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd’s holdings in LKQ were worth $1,784,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Cerity Partners LLC grew its position in shares of LKQ by 15.8% during the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 20,178 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $805,000 after buying an additional 2,759 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its holdings in LKQ by 31.2% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,256 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of LKQ by 25.9% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 207,055 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $8,266,000 after purchasing an additional 42,634 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of LKQ by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,020,689 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $240,346,000 after purchasing an additional 411,390 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA lifted its position in shares of LKQ by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 30,447 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,215,000 after purchasing an additional 3,138 shares during the last quarter. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LKQ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a report on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded LKQ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, LKQ currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at LKQ

In related news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.32, for a total transaction of $634,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 336,135 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,225,233.20. This represents a 4.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders sold a total of 35,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,416,300 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

LKQ Stock Performance

Shares of LKQ stock opened at $41.59 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $40.14 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.71. LKQ Co. has a 1 year low of $35.56 and a 1 year high of $53.53. The firm has a market cap of $10.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.87 and a beta of 1.28.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The auto parts company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.42 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 14.93% and a net margin of 4.81%. Analysts predict that LKQ Co. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.80%.

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.