Nomura Holdings Inc. Makes New Investment in LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of LKQ Co. (NASDAQ:LKQ - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 8,565 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $315,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Numerai GP LLC increased its position in shares of LKQ by 371.7% during the fourth quarter. Numerai GP LLC now owns 68,757 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $2,527,000 after acquiring an additional 54,182 shares in the last quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp boosted its stake in LKQ by 20.2% during the 4th quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 11,195 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 1,883 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in LKQ by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 914,932 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $33,624,000 after purchasing an additional 15,859 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in shares of LKQ by 36.2% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,073,932 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $39,467,000 after purchasing an additional 285,379 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gotham Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of LKQ by 90.5% in the fourth quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 640,066 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $23,522,000 after purchasing an additional 304,142 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.63% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barrington Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 price target on shares of LKQ in a report on Monday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of LKQ from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of LKQ from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, LKQ currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $52.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at LKQ

In related news, CEO Justin L. Jude purchased 2,708 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were bought at an average price of $36.99 per share, for a total transaction of $100,168.92. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 280,777 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,385,941.23. This represents a 0.97% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $38.02, for a total transaction of $190,100.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 316,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,019,452.70. The trade was a 1.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 35,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,457,150. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

LKQ Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LKQ traded down $0.20 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $40.65. 255,284 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,271,323. The company's 50 day moving average price is $40.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $39.50. LKQ Co. has a 52 week low of $35.56 and a 52 week high of $46.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $10.49 billion, a PE ratio of 15.53 and a beta of 0.98.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.79. The business had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.58 billion. LKQ had a net margin of 4.81% and a return on equity of 14.93%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.82 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that LKQ Co. will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Investors of record on Thursday, May 15th will be issued a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. LKQ's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.78%.

About LKQ

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.