Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the six ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $216.00.

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on LECO shares. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Lincoln Electric from $178.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $187.00 to $179.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Lincoln Electric from $242.00 to $212.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

LECO stock opened at $177.64 on Friday. Lincoln Electric has a 52-week low of $161.11 and a 52-week high of $238.47. The business has a fifty day moving average of $187.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $196.10. The stock has a market cap of $9.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.22 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $365.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $974.39 million. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 11.63% and a return on equity of 40.19%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.23 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Lincoln Electric will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.99%.

Insider Activity at Lincoln Electric

In other news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 21,054 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $4,536,505.38. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 54,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,777,590.20. The trade was a 27.81 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of LECO. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 255.1% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 174 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 54.1% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 299 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter valued at $68,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Lincoln Electric by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 389 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $73,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells welding, cutting, and brazing products worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Americas Welding, International Welding, and The Harris Products Group. It offers brazing and soldering filler metals, arc welding equipment, plasma and oxyfuel cutting systems, wire feeding systems, fume control equipment, welding accessories, and specialty gas regulators, and education solutions, as well as a portfolio of automated solutions for joining, cutting, material handling, module assembly, and end of line testing, as well as involved in brazing and soldering alloys, and in the retail business in the United States.