LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its holdings in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ - Free Report) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 31,532,218 shares of the auto parts company's stock after selling 132,967 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 12.13% of LKQ worth $1,158,809,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LKQ. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora grew its holdings in shares of LKQ by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. OLD Second National Bank of Aurora now owns 44,169 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $1,623,000 after buying an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in LKQ by 31.2% during the 3rd quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,256 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the period. Cromwell Holdings LLC grew its stake in LKQ by 81.0% during the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 742 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC increased its holdings in shares of LKQ by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 4,841 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $178,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of LKQ by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC now owns 12,368 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $455,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.63% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at LKQ

In other LKQ news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the company's 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 50,000 shares of company stock valued at $2,048,550. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

LKQ Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LKQ traded up $0.43 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $42.97. 2,549,648 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,205,221. 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 firm has a market cap of $11.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.40 and a beta of 1.28. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.30 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $39.00. LKQ Co. has a twelve month low of $35.56 and a twelve month high of $53.15.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The auto parts company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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%. As a group, analysts anticipate that LKQ Co. will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.79%. LKQ's dividend payout ratio is currently 45.80%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on LKQ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. StockNews.com raised shares of LKQ from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Barrington Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "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.