Aquatic Capital Management LLC Purchases New Position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 29,093 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,861,000. Aquatic Capital Management LLC owned 0.05% of Lincoln Electric at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Algert Global LLC lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 17.1% during the 3rd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 36,630 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,638,000 after buying an additional 5,340 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 49.0% in the 3rd quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 103,303 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $24,362,000 after acquiring an additional 33,954 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 17.5% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 121,208 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,589,000 after acquiring an additional 18,048 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning raised its position in Lincoln Electric by 8.3% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 15,985 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,770,000 after acquiring an additional 1,220 shares during the period. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 63.5% during the third quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 7,861 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,854,000 after purchasing an additional 3,053 shares in the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Lincoln Electric stock opened at $258.45 on Monday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $271.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $249.70. The stock has a market cap of $14.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.16. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $161.11 and a 1-year high of $310.00.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 39.35%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.57 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio is 33.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $297.00 target price (up from $285.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 target price on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $302.83.

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.