Isthmus Partners LLC Acquires 2,773 Shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Isthmus Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 1.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 288,410 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,773 shares during the quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC owned about 0.11% of LKQ worth $120,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of LKQ in the fourth quarter worth about $159,324,000. Boston Partners increased its stake in LKQ by 22.0% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 7,507,873 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $358,848,000 after acquiring an additional 1,351,389 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of LKQ by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,307,753 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $540,398,000 after acquiring an additional 977,585 shares in the last quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP boosted its position in shares of LKQ by 39.8% during the 2nd quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 3,067,772 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $127,589,000 after acquiring an additional 873,665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of LKQ by 230.3% during the 2nd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,011,132 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $42,053,000 after acquiring an additional 705,040 shares during the last quarter. 95.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

LKQ Trading Down 1.8 %

LKQ stock traded down $0.75 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $39.98. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,645,753 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,772,233. LKQ Co. has a 1 year low of $35.57 and a 1 year high of $53.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.98 and a beta of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.75.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The auto parts company reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $3.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.87 billion. LKQ had a net margin of 5.03% and a return on equity of 15.33%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.09 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that LKQ Co. will post 3.6 EPS for the current year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 15th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is 38.96%.

Insider Transactions at LKQ

In other LKQ news, SVP Matthew J. Mckay bought 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $39.75 per share, with a total value of $99,375.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 94,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,763,132.50. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Matthew J. Mckay bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $39.75 per share, with a total value of $99,375.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 94,670 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,763,132.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Andrew C. Clarke purchased 7,600 shares of LKQ stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $39.70 per share, with a total value of $301,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $417,604.30. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have bought 12,600 shares of company stock valued at $500,870. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on LKQ from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $60.80.

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.