Creative Planning Sells 6,101 Shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Creative Planning cut its position in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 31.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,074 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after selling 6,101 shares during the period. Creative Planning’s holdings in LKQ were worth $522,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in LKQ. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in LKQ during the 2nd quarter worth $33,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC grew its stake in LKQ by 33.5% during the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 289 shares during the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise grew its stake in LKQ by 29.8% during the 2nd quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 1,211 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the last quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in LKQ during the 1st quarter valued at about $56,000. Finally, 1620 Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in LKQ during the 2nd quarter valued at about $60,000. 95.63% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on LKQ. StockNews.com downgraded LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on LKQ from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on LKQ from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on LKQ from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $59.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a report on Thursday, September 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.80.

LKQ Price Performance

LKQ stock opened at $37.66 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.72 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $39.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.79 billion, a PE ratio of 14.05 and a beta of 1.29. LKQ Co. has a 1 year low of $35.57 and a 1 year high of $53.68.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $3.58 billion during 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 business’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that LKQ Co. will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.19%. LKQ’s payout ratio is 44.78%.

About LKQ

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.