Short Interest in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) Increases By 27.1%

LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) saw a significant increase in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 4,930,000 shares, an increase of 27.1% from the October 31st total of 3,880,000 shares. Approximately 1.9% of the company’s shares are short sold. Based on an average trading volume of 2,380,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 2.1 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LKQ has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on LKQ from $53.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 25th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $59.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Robert W. Baird dropped their price target on shares of LKQ from $50.00 to $48.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of LKQ from $54.00 to $55.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of LKQ from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.80.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LKQ

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in LKQ. Erste Asset Management GmbH purchased a new stake in LKQ during the third quarter worth $45,733,000. Seizert Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in LKQ by 451.1% during the third quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,327,664 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $53,000,000 after purchasing an additional 1,086,758 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in LKQ by 552.8% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,236,158 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $51,412,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,805 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in LKQ by 7.9% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 11,944,496 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $496,772,000 after purchasing an additional 875,420 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its position in shares of LKQ by 39.8% during the second quarter. Cooke & Bieler LP now owns 3,067,772 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $127,589,000 after buying an additional 873,665 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

LKQ Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ LKQ traded up $0.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $39.29. The company had a trading volume of 1,195,742 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,938,225. LKQ has a 52 week low of $35.57 and a 52 week high of $53.68. The business’s 50-day moving average is $38.62 and its 200-day moving average is $40.64. The stock has a market cap of $10.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.66 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.72, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69.

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

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, November 14th. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is 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.