LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 4,070,000 shares, a decrease of 17.4% from the November 15th total of 4,930,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,430,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days. Approximately 1.6% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

LKQ Trading Down 1.0 %

LKQ opened at $37.98 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $9.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.17 and a beta of 1.29. LKQ has a 52 week low of $35.57 and a 52 week high of $53.68. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $40.28.

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

LKQ Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.16%. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.78%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LKQ

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in LKQ in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in shares of LKQ in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of LKQ by 94.2% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,010 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of LKQ by 33.5% during the third quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 289 shares during the period. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise raised its holdings in LKQ by 29.8% in the second quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 1,211 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

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.