Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Acquires 1,053,001 Shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 25.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,231,940 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,053,001 shares during the quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 2.01% of LKQ worth $192,268,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in LKQ in the 4th quarter worth about $119,395,000. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LKQ during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $91,678,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in LKQ by 26.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,571,136 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $204,739,000 after buying an additional 1,171,481 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in LKQ in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,363,000. Finally, FIL Ltd raised its holdings in LKQ by 1,008.7% during the 4th quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 964,923 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $35,461,000 after acquiring an additional 877,888 shares during the period. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.66, for a total transaction of $416,600.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 359,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $14,975,186.92. This trade represents a 2.71 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In the last three months, insiders have sold 45,000 shares of company stock worth $1,864,350. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

LKQ Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ LKQ opened at $42.19 on Thursday. 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 business has a 50-day moving average of $41.54 and a 200-day moving average of $39.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.10 and a beta of 1.09. LKQ Co. has a 12 month low of $35.56 and a 12 month high of $46.64.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The auto parts company reported $0.80 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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. Sell-side analysts expect 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 was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. LKQ’s payout ratio is currently 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.