LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

LKQ has been the subject of several other research reports. Robert W. Baird lowered their price target on LKQ from $48.00 to $42.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of LKQ in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Barrington Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $49.50.

LKQ Trading Down 0.3%

NASDAQ LKQ opened at $29.75 on Monday. LKQ has a 1-year low of $28.42 and a 1-year high of $44.82. The company has a current ratio of 1.81, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19. The company has a market capitalization of $7.65 billion, a PE ratio of 10.90 and a beta of 0.84. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $31.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.99.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by ($0.06). LKQ had a net margin of 5.04% and a return on equity of 13.85%. The firm had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.62 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.98 EPS. LKQ’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. LKQ has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.000-3.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that LKQ will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 14th. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is 43.96%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On LKQ

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its position in LKQ by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 132,697 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $3,889,000 after buying an additional 4,534 shares during the period. Heartwood Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LKQ in the third quarter worth $31,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC increased its position in LKQ by 6.3% during the second quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC now owns 11,859 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $439,000 after acquiring an additional 701 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S increased its position in LKQ by 170.0% during the second quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 7,886 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 4,965 shares during the period. Finally, Integrated Investment Consultants LLC raised its stake in LKQ by 53.4% during the 2nd quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 17,312 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $641,000 after purchasing an additional 6,029 shares during the last quarter. 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.