Diversify Advisory Services LLC Buys New Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Diversify Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 25,831 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,064,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LECO. New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 64,631 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,488,000 after acquiring an additional 4,655 shares in the last quarter. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter valued at $1,677,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter valued at $415,155,000. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 23.2% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 64,257 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $16,005,000 after purchasing an additional 12,093 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,306,641 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $313,175,000 after purchasing an additional 6,070 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 price objective on Lincoln Electric in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Barclays lifted their price target on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen raised Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Monday, August 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $340.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of LECO stock opened at $279.56 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.98. The firm has a market cap of $15.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.20. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $265.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $265.77. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $216.22 and a one year high of $310.00.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.12. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.23% and a net margin of 12.35%.The company had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.60 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.11 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is currently 31.57%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lincoln Electric

In other news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of Lincoln Electric stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total transaction of $232,214.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,560,954.39. The trade was a 8.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.68% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc (NASDAQ: LECO) is a global manufacturer and distributor of welding products, robotic welding systems, plasma and oxyfuel cutting equipment, and surface treatment systems. The company’s portfolio encompasses welding consumables such as electrodes and wires, as well as power sources, torches, and automated welding cells. Lincoln Electric also offers software solutions and training services designed to optimize productivity and quality in fabrication and manufacturing operations.

Founded in 1895 by John C.