River Road Asset Management LLC Purchases 114,207 Shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

River Road Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,690,401 shares of the auto parts company’s stock after purchasing an additional 114,207 shares during the period. LKQ accounts for approximately 3.1% of River Road Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. River Road Asset Management LLC’s holdings in LKQ were worth $224,154,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Avior Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 86.3% in the 4th quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,171 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $629,000 after purchasing an additional 6,100 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 369.8% in the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 456,839 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $21,832,000 after purchasing an additional 359,606 shares in the last quarter. Oak Family Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Oak Family Advisors LLC now owns 13,604 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $650,000 after purchasing an additional 894 shares in the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 133,763 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $6,393,000 after purchasing an additional 384 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 37,015 shares of the auto parts company’s stock valued at $1,768,000 after purchasing an additional 1,516 shares in the last quarter. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at LKQ

In related news, CEO Dominick P. Zarcone sold 200,000 shares of LKQ stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.97, for a total value of $10,394,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 386,522 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,087,548.34. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.45% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

LKQ Trading Down 1.1 %

LKQ stock traded down $0.53 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $47.91. 1,110,929 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,527,192. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59. LKQ Co. has a 12 month low of $41.49 and a 12 month high of $59.38. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $51.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $48.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.75 and a beta of 1.28.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 22nd. The auto parts company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $3.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.52 billion. LKQ had a net margin of 6.75% and a return on equity of 17.24%. LKQ’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.78 EPS. Analysts forecast that LKQ Co. will post 4.08 EPS for the current year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were paid a $0.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. LKQ’s dividend payout ratio is currently 34.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on LKQ shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of LKQ from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Barrington Research reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of LKQ from $65.00 to $63.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $66.00 target price on shares of LKQ in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, LKQ presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $63.50.

LKQ 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.