Teacher Retirement System of Texas Purchases New Shares in LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas bought a new stake in LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 38,036 shares of the auto parts company's stock, valued at approximately $1,618,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in shares of LKQ by 104.8% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 977 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Horizon Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in LKQ during the first quarter worth approximately $42,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its position in LKQ by 299.6% during the first quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,135 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 851 shares during the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of LKQ by 30.2% during the first quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,847 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 428 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of LKQ by 56.2% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,971 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 709 shares during the period. 95.63% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

LKQ Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ:LKQ opened at $38.60 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $39.33 and a 200 day moving average of $39.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 1.52. LKQ Corporation has a 52-week low of $35.56 and a 52-week high of $46.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.96 billion, a PE ratio of 14.40 and a beta of 0.95.

LKQ (NASDAQ:LKQ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The auto parts company reported $0.79 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79. LKQ had a net margin of 4.97% and a return on equity of 14.66%. The company had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.58 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.82 earnings per share. LKQ's revenue for the quarter was down 6.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that LKQ Corporation will post 3.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

LKQ Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th were issued a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. LKQ's payout ratio is 44.78%.

Insider Activity at LKQ

In related news, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the firm's 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 316,135 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,019,452.70. This trade represents a 1.56% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Justin L. Jude bought 2,708 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 25th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $36.99 per share, with a total value of $100,168.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 280,777 shares in the company, valued at $10,385,941.23. This trade represents a 0.97% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on LKQ shares. Barrington Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of LKQ in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of LKQ from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $52.60.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.