Artisan Partners Limited Partnership Purchases 64,639 Shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its position in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,380,086 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 64,639 shares during the period. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership owned 0.53% of LKQ worth $50,718,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in LKQ. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of LKQ by 21.1% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 440,244 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $16,109,000 after purchasing an additional 76,692 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC grew its stake in LKQ by 30.5% in the 4th quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 12,853 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $472,000 after buying an additional 3,004 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of LKQ by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 813,339 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $29,890,000 after buying an additional 293,872 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC raised its position in shares of LKQ by 10.4% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 126,729 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $4,657,000 after buying an additional 11,975 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in shares of LKQ during the 4th quarter worth $3,117,000. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LKQ Trading Up 0.5 %

NASDAQ LKQ opened at $41.59 on Friday. LKQ Co. has a 1-year low of $35.56 and a 1-year high of $53.53. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average of $40.14 and a 200-day moving average of $38.96. The firm has a market cap of $10.78 billion, a PE ratio of 15.87 and a beta of 1.28.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last announced 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. The business had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.42 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 14.93% and a net margin of 4.81%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that LKQ Co. will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were given a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. LKQ’s payout ratio is 45.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded LKQ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $52.60.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was 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 owns 369,462 shares in the company, valued at $13,352,356.68. This represents a 1.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 35,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,416,300. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

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.