Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Trims Stock Position in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its stake in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,843 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 1,358 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in LKQ were worth $509,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of LKQ. Cromwell Holdings LLC raised its holdings in LKQ by 81.0% during the fourth quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 742 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA raised its stake in shares of 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 buying an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its holdings in shares of LKQ by 618.0% in the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 1,673 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 1,440 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in shares of LKQ in the third quarter valued at approximately $81,000. Finally, Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in LKQ by 107.8% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,099 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 1,089 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

LKQ Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LKQ opened at $40.91 on Tuesday. LKQ Co. has a twelve month low of $35.56 and a twelve month high of $53.68. The company has a market capitalization of $10.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.61 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $39.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.91.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last issued 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. The firm had revenue of $3.36 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.42 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 14.93% and a net margin of 4.81%. As a group, research analysts expect that LKQ Co. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 13th. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.80%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LKQ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of LKQ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company 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, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $52.60.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other LKQ news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.14, for a total value of $180,700.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 369,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,352,356.68. This trade represents a 1.34 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders have sold 35,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,416,300 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

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.