Victory Capital Management Inc. Increases Holdings in LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ)

Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of LKQ Corporation (NASDAQ:LKQ - Free Report) by 2.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,737,765 shares of the auto parts company's stock after buying an additional 48,467 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 0.67% of LKQ worth $73,925,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of LKQ in the fourth quarter worth $91,678,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in shares of LKQ in the first quarter valued at approximately $321,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas acquired a new stake in LKQ during the first quarter worth $1,618,000. Amalgamated Bank boosted its stake in shares of LKQ by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 50,851 shares of the auto parts company's stock valued at $2,163,000 after purchasing an additional 801 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC lifted its position in LKQ by 53.2% during the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 19,298 shares of the auto parts company's stock worth $709,000 after buying an additional 6,698 shares in the last quarter. 95.63% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Insider Activity at LKQ

In other LKQ news, CEO Justin L. Jude purchased 2,708 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 25th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $36.99 per share, for a total transaction of $100,168.92. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 280,777 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,385,941.23. This represents a 0.97% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Dominick P. Zarcone sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director directly owned 316,135 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,019,452.70. This represents a 1.56% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.55% of the company's stock.

LKQ Trading Up 0.3%

LKQ opened at $37.45 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.97 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 0.56. LKQ Corporation has a 12 month low of $35.56 and a 12 month high of $46.64. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $39.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $39.56.

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

LKQ Announces Dividend

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 3.20%. LKQ's dividend payout ratio is presently 44.78%.

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.

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