Insider Buying: LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) CEO Acquires 2,708 Shares of Stock

LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) CEO Justin L. Jude acquired 2,708 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $36.99 per share, with a total value of $100,168.92. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 280,777 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,385,941.23. This trade represents a 0.97 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

LKQ Stock Up 0.4 %

LKQ stock opened at $37.41 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. LKQ Co. has a twelve month low of $35.56 and a twelve month high of $46.64. The company’s 50 day moving average is $41.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $39.18. The stock has a market cap of $9.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.28 and a beta of 1.09.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.79 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79. LKQ had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 14.93%. The company had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.58 billion. Research analysts expect that LKQ Co. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.78%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LKQ

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LKQ. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in LKQ in the fourth quarter valued at about $165,548,000. EdgePoint Investment Group Inc. acquired a new stake in LKQ during the fourth quarter worth approximately $160,339,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in LKQ during the fourth quarter worth approximately $119,395,000. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in LKQ during the fourth quarter worth approximately $91,678,000. Finally, Eminence Capital LP acquired a new stake in LKQ during the fourth quarter worth approximately $68,944,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently weighed in on LKQ. Barrington Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a report on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $52.60.

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.