Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 22,301 Shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 18.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 143,423 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,301 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. owned 0.05% of LKQ worth $6,854,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in LKQ in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new position in shares of LKQ during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Clear Street Markets LLC boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 94.1% during the 1st quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 497 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 81.1% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 623 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 228.4% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 647 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 450 shares during the last quarter. 95.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Dominick P. Zarcone sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.97, for a total transaction of $10,394,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 386,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,087,548.34. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

LKQ Stock Up 1.4 %

LKQ stock opened at $48.58 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $12.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.88 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. LKQ Co. has a twelve month low of $41.49 and a twelve month high of $59.38. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $51.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.36.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The auto parts company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.08. LKQ had a net margin of 6.75% and a return on equity of 17.24%. The firm had revenue of $3.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.78 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that LKQ Co. will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.47%. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is 34.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $66.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of LKQ from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $63.50.

LKQ 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.