LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) Stake Boosted by Vestcor Inc

Vestcor Inc raised its stake in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ - Free Report) by 108.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,561 shares of the auto parts company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,537 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc's holdings in LKQ were worth $462,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cromwell Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LKQ by 81.0% in the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 742 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 332 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its stake 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. CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its holdings in shares of LKQ by 618.0% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,673 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 1,440 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of LKQ in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $81,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its position in LKQ by 107.8% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,099 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 1,089 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.63% of the company's stock.

LKQ Price Performance

LKQ traded down $0.58 on Friday, reaching $40.40. The company had a trading volume of 7,151,095 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,081,052. The company has a market capitalization of $10.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.42 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a fifty day moving average of $39.72 and a 200-day moving average of $38.96. LKQ Co. has a one year low of $35.56 and a one year high of $53.68.

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LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The auto parts company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.04. LKQ had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 14.93%. The business had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.42 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that LKQ Co. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. LKQ's payout ratio is currently 45.80%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on LKQ. StockNews.com upgraded LKQ from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, LKQ has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $52.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now directly owns 369,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,352,356.68. This trade represents a 1.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 35,000 shares of company stock worth $1,416,300. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About LKQ

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.