Handelsbanken Fonder AB Reduces Stock Holdings in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB reduced its stake in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ - Free Report) by 71.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 60,200 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 153,636 shares during the period. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in LKQ were worth $2,212,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of LKQ during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in LKQ by 94.2% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,010 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its holdings in LKQ by 31.2% in the third quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,256 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the period. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in LKQ during the third quarter worth about $57,000. Finally, CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its holdings in LKQ by 618.0% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,673 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 1,440 shares during the last quarter. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LKQ Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LKQ traded up $0.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $42.19. 4,852,107 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,266,086. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.10 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $38.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $38.83. 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 12 month low of $35.56 and a 12 month high of $53.68.

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

LKQ Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. LKQ's payout ratio is 45.80%.

Insider Transactions at LKQ

In other LKQ news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.14, for a total transaction of $180,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 369,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,352,356.68. This represents a 1.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 20,000 shares of company stock valued at $781,500 in the last three months. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on LKQ. StockNews.com lowered shares of LKQ from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, LKQ currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.