StockNews.com Upgrades LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) to “Buy”

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a report on Thursday, February 20th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, LKQ has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $52.60.

LKQ Price Performance

NASDAQ LKQ opened at $40.40 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $39.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $38.95. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The company has a market cap of $10.47 billion, a PE ratio of 15.42 and a beta of 1.28. LKQ has a 1 year low of $35.56 and a 1 year high of $53.68.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The auto parts company reported $0.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $3.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.42 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 14.93% and a net margin of 4.81%. On average, analysts predict that LKQ will post 3.57 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.14, for a total value of $180,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 369,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,352,356.68. This represents a 1.34 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 35,000 shares of company stock worth $1,416,300. Insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LKQ

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in LKQ by 0.3% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 11,977,708 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $478,150,000 after buying an additional 33,212 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in LKQ by 1.2% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,449,166 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $457,051,000 after purchasing an additional 134,176 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in LKQ by 11.0% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 8,406,444 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $309,609,000 after purchasing an additional 833,519 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in LKQ by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591,553 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $241,643,000 after purchasing an additional 48,813 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in LKQ by 7.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,020,689 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $240,346,000 after purchasing an additional 411,390 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.