Axa S.A. Purchases 126,693 Shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Axa S.A. lifted its position in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 3,180.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 130,677 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 126,693 shares during the quarter. Axa S.A.’s holdings in LKQ were worth $5,435,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Czech National Bank grew its holdings in LKQ by 0.5% in the first quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 47,084 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,515,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the period. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of LKQ by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 4,572 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $244,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC increased its position in LKQ by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 5,249 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $280,000 after buying an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its stake in LKQ by 29.8% during the second quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 1,211 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in LKQ by 2.2% in the first quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 13,158 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $703,000 after acquiring an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. 95.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at LKQ

In other news, CEO Justin L. Jude purchased 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $39.91 per share, for a total transaction of $99,775.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 207,515 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,281,923.65. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other LKQ news, Director Andrew C. Clarke purchased 7,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $39.70 per share, for a total transaction of $301,720.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $417,604.30. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Justin L. Jude acquired 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 26th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $39.91 per share, with a total value of $99,775.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 207,515 shares in the company, valued at $8,281,923.65. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have bought 12,600 shares of company stock valued at $500,870. 0.55% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

LKQ Price Performance

LKQ opened at $40.37 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $40.71 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.75. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.11 and a beta of 1.29. LKQ Co. has a 52-week low of $35.57 and a 52-week high of $53.68.

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

LKQ Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 15th were given a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 15th. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.96%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LKQ has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $59.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a report on Thursday, September 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on LKQ from $54.00 to $50.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 26th. One research 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 presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $58.00.

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.