LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) Short Interest Up 20.2% in September

LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) saw a large growth in short interest in September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 6,000,000 shares, a growth of 20.2% from the August 31st total of 4,990,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,950,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.1 days. Approximately 2.3% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $59.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of LKQ from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of LKQ from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $58.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LKQ

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LKQ. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LKQ during the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in shares of LKQ by 65.1% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 900 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 355 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC raised its holdings in shares of LKQ by 54.2% during the first quarter. CVA Family Office LLC now owns 825 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $44,000 after acquiring an additional 290 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise grew its position in LKQ by 29.8% during the 2nd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 1,211 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in LKQ in the first quarter valued at approximately $56,000. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

LKQ Stock Performance

NASDAQ LKQ traded down $0.53 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $39.84. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 788,676 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,833,446. The stock has a market cap of $10.63 billion, a PE ratio of 13.11 and a beta of 1.29. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $40.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $43.73. LKQ has a 52 week low of $35.57 and a 52 week high of $53.68. The company has a current ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The auto parts company reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.03 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $3.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.87 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 15.33% and a net margin of 5.03%. LKQ’s quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.09 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that LKQ will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were paid a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.01%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 15th. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.96%.

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.