Invst LLC Takes $1.25 Million Position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Invst LLC bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 35,447 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,253,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. New York State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 7.8% during the fourth quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 64,631 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $15,488,000 after purchasing an additional 4,655 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric during the second quarter worth about $656,165,000. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $1,677,000. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter worth about $415,155,000. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 23.2% in the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 64,257 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $16,005,000 after buying an additional 12,093 shares during the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lincoln Electric Stock Down 0.7%

NASDAQ LECO opened at $280.15 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $15.27 billion, a PE ratio of 27.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.20. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $216.22 and a fifty-two week high of $310.00. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $266.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $265.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted 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. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.23%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.60 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lincoln Electric news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total value of $232,214.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,319 shares in the company, valued at $2,560,954.39. The trade was a 8.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. 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 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $257.00 to $283.00 in a report on Monday, August 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric 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.