LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ) Shares Sold by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its stake in LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 12.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,119 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 1,724 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in LKQ were worth $516,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board increased its stake in LKQ by 25.7% in the first quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 8,190 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $348,000 after purchasing an additional 1,677 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in LKQ by 3.0% in the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,648,612 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $112,672,000 after purchasing an additional 75,936 shares during the last quarter. ASR Vermogensbeheer N.V. acquired a new position in LKQ in the first quarter valued at $1,138,000. Provident Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in LKQ by 127.0% in the first quarter. Provident Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,380 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $995,000 after purchasing an additional 13,080 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. acquired a new position in LKQ in the first quarter valued at $213,000. 95.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

LKQ Price Performance

LKQ stock opened at $31.56 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $35.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.79. LKQ Corporation has a 12-month low of $28.92 and a 12-month high of $44.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company has a market cap of $8.12 billion, a PE ratio of 11.56 and a beta of 0.92.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by ($0.06). LKQ had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The firm had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.62 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.98 EPS. LKQ’s revenue was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that LKQ Corporation will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on LKQ. Wall Street Zen lowered LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on LKQ from $48.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Finally, Barrington Research reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.40.

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.