LKQ Q4 Earnings: Sales Growth Stalls, EPS Beats, Europe Shines And More

LKQ Corporation LKQ shares are trading higher in the premarket session on Thursday.

The company reported fourth-quarter adjusted earnings per share of 80 cents, beating the street view of 74 cents. Quarterly sales of $3.357 billion (down 4.1% year over year) missed the analyst consensus estimate of $3.398 billion.

Gross margin in the quarter under review contracted to 39.5% from 40% in the year-ago period.

Total Segment EBITDA margin in the quarter under review expanded to 12.1% from 11.3% in the year-ago period.

The Europe segment achieved an EBITDA margin of 10.1% in the quarter, which is a record for the segment in the fourth quarter, the company said.

Also Read: SpaceX CEO Elon Musk Says Making Mars ‘Self-Sustaining’ Will Take Up To Half A Century, Will Require ’10 Earth-Mars Transfer Windows’

“This was the third consecutive quarter the Europe segment attained double-digit EBITDA margins, and the Europe segment achieved its highest level of EBITDA dollars for a full year in 2024,” stated Justin Jude, President and Chief Executive Officer. 

LKQ exited the quarter with cash and equivalents worth $234 million, compared with $299 million in the year-ago period.

Inventories expanded to $3.220 billion at the end of the quarter, up from $3.121 billion a year ago.

The company’s long-term obligations (excluding current portion) at the end of the fourth quarter expanded to $4.127 billion from $3.655 billion.

On February 18, 2025, the Board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.30 per share of common stock, payable on March 27, 2025, to stockholders of record at the close of business on March 13, 2025.

Outlook: LKQ sees FY25 adjusted EPS of $3.40 – $3.70 versus the $3.61 estimate.

Organic revenue growth for parts and services is expected to grow in the range of 0% – 2%.

Price Action: LKQ shares are trading higher by 4.06% at $41.00 premarket at last check Thursday.

Read Next:

• Uber CEO Hints At Potential Tesla Partnership For Robotaxis: ‘No One Wants To Compete Against Tesla Or Elon’