MML Investors Services LLC Purchases 2,244 Shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

MML Investors Services LLC increased its position in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 12.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,219 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,244 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in LKQ were worth $807,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LKQ. Dean Investment Associates LLC boosted its position in LKQ by 1,668.0% during the third quarter. Dean Investment Associates LLC now owns 90,096 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $3,597,000 after purchasing an additional 85,000 shares during the period. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC lifted its stake in shares of LKQ by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Kensington Investment Counsel LLC now owns 67,758 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,705,000 after buying an additional 1,288 shares during the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LKQ by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 42,444 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $1,694,000 after buying an additional 1,697 shares during the period. iSAM Funds UK Ltd bought a new position in LKQ in the 3rd quarter valued at about $323,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in LKQ by 77.5% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 139,228 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $5,558,000 after acquiring an additional 60,768 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded LKQ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on LKQ from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on shares of LKQ from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $59.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of LKQ from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.80.

LKQ Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LKQ opened at $36.88 on Friday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $38.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.72 and a quick ratio of 0.67. LKQ Co. has a 1 year low of $35.57 and a 1 year high of $53.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.76 and a beta of 1.29.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.87 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.65 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 15.15% and a net margin of 4.90%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.86 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that LKQ Co. will post 3.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.25%. LKQ’s payout ratio is currently 44.78%.

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.