KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Invests $3.12 Million in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 84,808 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $3,117,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of LKQ by 112.9% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 42,563 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $1,564,000 after acquiring an additional 22,575 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 833,519 shares in the last quarter. Semanteon Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in LKQ in the fourth quarter valued at $367,000. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group purchased a new stake in shares of LKQ during the 3rd quarter worth $634,000. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund grew its stake in shares of LKQ by 58.8% during the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 268,031 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $9,850,000 after purchasing an additional 99,229 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.63% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LKQ has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com raised LKQ from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Barrington Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $52.60.

Remove Ads

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of LKQ stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now owns 369,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,352,356.68. The trade was a 1.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders have sold 35,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,416,300 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

LKQ Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of LKQ traded up $0.19 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $41.59. The company had a trading volume of 2,669,244 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,192,738. LKQ Co. has a 1-year low of $35.56 and a 1-year high of $53.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $40.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.96. The stock has a market cap of $10.78 billion, a PE ratio of 15.87 and a beta of 1.28.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The auto parts company reported $0.80 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $3.36 billion for 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that LKQ Co. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were issued a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. LKQ's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.80%.

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.