Creative Planning Cuts Stake in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Creative Planning cut its holdings in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 31.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,074 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 6,101 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in LKQ were worth $522,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of LKQ during the second quarter valued at $3,839,000. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of LKQ by 91.0% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 582,953 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $31,136,000 after buying an additional 277,700 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its position in shares of LKQ by 133.2% during the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 87,091 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $4,652,000 after buying an additional 49,739 shares during the last quarter. Addenda Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of LKQ during the second quarter valued at $6,419,000. Finally, TCW Group Inc. bought a new position in LKQ in the second quarter valued at about $6,601,000. 95.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on LKQ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on LKQ from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. StockNews.com downgraded LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $59.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on LKQ from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, LKQ currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $53.80.

LKQ Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LKQ opened at $37.66 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.05 and a beta of 1.29. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $39.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. LKQ Co. has a 12-month low of $35.57 and a 12-month high of $53.68.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $3.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.65 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 15.15% and a net margin of 4.90%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.86 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that LKQ Co. will post 3.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.78%.

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.