LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) Short Interest Up 31.0% in February

LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ - Get Free Report) was the target of a large increase in short interest in February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 8,490,000 shares, an increase of 31.0% from the January 31st total of 6,480,000 shares. Currently, 3.3% of the company's stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,220,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days.

LKQ Price Performance

LKQ stock traded up $0.63 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $43.38. 2,875,306 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,363,480. 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 has a fifty day moving average of $38.69 and a 200 day moving average of $38.94. LKQ has a 1-year low of $35.56 and a 1-year high of $53.68. The company has a market capitalization of $11.24 billion, a PE ratio of 16.56 and a beta of 1.28.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The auto parts company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.04. LKQ had a return on equity of 14.93% and a net margin of 4.81%. The firm had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.42 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that LKQ will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

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LKQ Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.77%. LKQ's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.80%.

Insider Activity at LKQ

In related news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.14, for a total value of $180,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 369,462 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,352,356.68. The trade was a 1.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In the last quarter, insiders sold 35,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,416,300. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of LKQ

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LKQ. Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in LKQ by 7.0% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 7,372 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $279,000 after purchasing an additional 485 shares during the period. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in LKQ by 74.9% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 65,217 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $2,603,000 after purchasing an additional 27,931 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. increased its position in LKQ by 0.3% in the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 103,156 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $4,118,000 after purchasing an additional 306 shares during the period. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in LKQ in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Radnor Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in LKQ in the third quarter worth about $1,633,000. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LKQ has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a report on Thursday, February 20th. StockNews.com cut LKQ from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to 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.