Norges Bank Invests $119.40 Million in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 3,248,832 shares of the auto parts company’s stock, valued at approximately $119,395,000. Norges Bank owned about 1.25% of LKQ at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of LKQ. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of LKQ by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,449,166 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $457,051,000 after acquiring an additional 134,176 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in LKQ by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 8,406,444 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $309,609,000 after purchasing an additional 833,519 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in LKQ by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,542,740 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $260,330,000 after purchasing an additional 21,161 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its stake in LKQ by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,020,689 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $240,346,000 after buying an additional 411,390 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of LKQ by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,572,676 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $94,546,000 after buying an additional 84,244 shares during the period. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

LKQ Stock Performance

Shares of LKQ opened at $42.54 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.23 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $38.98. The stock has a market cap of $11.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.24 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. LKQ Co. has a 52 week low of $35.56 and a 52 week high of $53.53.

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

LKQ Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.82%. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.80%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on LKQ shares. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a report on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com raised shares of LKQ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, LKQ currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $52.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of LKQ stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.14, for a total transaction of $180,700.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 369,462 shares in the company, valued at $13,352,356.68. This trade represents a 1.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders have sold 35,000 shares of company stock worth $1,416,300 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.55% 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.