LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) Shares Sold by Meritage Portfolio Management

Meritage Portfolio Management decreased its position in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 105,734 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 1,092 shares during the quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in LKQ were worth $5,053,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in LKQ by 27.4% in the fourth quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 6,780 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $324,000 after purchasing an additional 1,460 shares during the last quarter. Cognios Beta Neutral Large Cap Fund LP purchased a new position in shares of LKQ during the fourth quarter worth approximately $378,000. GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new position in shares of LKQ during the fourth quarter worth approximately $97,000. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of LKQ by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,017 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $718,000 after acquiring an additional 1,855 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA purchased a new position in shares of LKQ during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

LKQ Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ LKQ traded down $0.36 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $42.92. The stock had a trading volume of 2,404,329 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,700,997. The company has a market capitalization of $11.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.02 and a beta of 1.28. LKQ Co. has a 1-year low of $41.30 and a 1-year high of $59.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $50.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.27.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The auto parts company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.76 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 15.94% and a net margin of 5.79%. The business’s revenue was up 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.04 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that LKQ Co. will post 4.07 earnings per share for the current year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 16th will be given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 15th. LKQ’s payout ratio is 38.96%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on LKQ shares. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on shares of LKQ from $58.00 to $54.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on LKQ from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, LKQ has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $61.60.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Dominick P. Zarcone sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.97, for a total transaction of $10,394,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 386,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,087,548.34. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

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.