Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) Stock Has Average Target Price of $307.22

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have issued a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $307.22.

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley raised Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Wall Street Zen lowered Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. UBS Group assumed coverage on Lincoln Electric in a report on Monday, August 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $340.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings raised Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, DA Davidson began coverage on Lincoln Electric in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $320.00 price objective on the stock.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $261.13 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Lincoln Electric has a 1 year low of $216.22 and a 1 year high of $310.00. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $272.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $263.75. The firm has a market cap of $14.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.56 and a beta of 1.21.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lincoln Electric will post 11.18 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Lincoln Electric’s payout ratio is 31.57%.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln Electric

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LECO. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Lincoln Electric during the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. State of Wyoming bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter worth about $69,000. Root Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 118.8% during the 1st quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 350 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $87,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GK Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 3rd quarter valued at about $138,000. 79.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc is a Cleveland, Ohio-based manufacturer of welding, cutting and industrial automation products. The company serves manufacturers, fabricators, construction companies, maintenance and repair operations, utilities, and other industrial customers.

Its product portfolio includes arc-welding equipment, welding consumables such as electrodes and welding wire, plasma-cutting systems, welding accessories, and related safety products. Lincoln Electric also provides automated and robotic welding systems, engineered solutions, training, and technical support.