Short Interest in LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ) Expands By 20.4%

LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totaling 14,517,439 shares, an increase of 20.4% from the December 15th total of 12,055,295 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 8,413,133 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days. Currently, 5.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Currently, 5.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 8,413,133 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On LKQ

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LKQ. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in LKQ during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $250,000. Thompson Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of LKQ by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc. now owns 374,299 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $11,304,000 after buying an additional 46,052 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of LKQ by 3,046.7% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 270,525 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $8,170,000 after acquiring an additional 261,928 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in LKQ by 58.3% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,575 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $259,000 after acquiring an additional 3,157 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its stake in LKQ by 0.4% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 84,939 shares of the auto parts company’s stock worth $2,594,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 95.63% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. Stephens initiated coverage on LKQ in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $39.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 10th. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $43.00 price objective (down from $46.00) on shares of LKQ in a report on Monday, November 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of LKQ in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Barclays began coverage on LKQ in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $33.00 price target on the stock. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.33.

LKQ Trading Down 2.4%

NASDAQ:LKQ traded down $0.81 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $32.70. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,473,253 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,099,746. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 1.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.11 and a beta of 0.91. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $30.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.47. LKQ has a 1 year low of $28.13 and a 1 year high of $44.82.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The auto parts company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $3.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.54 billion. LKQ had a return on equity of 13.45% and a net margin of 4.99%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.88 earnings per share. LKQ has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.000-3.150 EPS. Research analysts expect that LKQ will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 4th. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th were paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, November 20th. LKQ’s payout ratio is presently 44.44%.

About LKQ

LKQ Corporation is a leading provider of alternative and specialty parts to repair and accessorize automobiles and other vehicles. The company supplies a broad range of replacement components, including recycled original equipment manufacturer (OEM) parts, aftermarket parts, refurbished and remanufactured items. Its products support collision repair, mechanical repair and performance enhancement needs across passenger cars, heavy trucks and recreational vehicles.

Through a combination of in-house operations and strategic acquisitions, LKQ has developed a comprehensive product portfolio that extends beyond core replacement parts.