Congress Asset Management Co. Purchases 14,022 Shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Congress Asset Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 16.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 100,327 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 14,022 shares during the quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. owned about 0.18% of Lincoln Electric worth $24,042,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LECO. Oak Thistle LLC bought a new position in Lincoln Electric in the third quarter worth approximately $1,020,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 239.5% during the third quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 184,191 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $43,438,000 after acquiring an additional 129,932 shares in the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 18.9% during the third quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 34,628 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,166,000 after acquiring an additional 5,512 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 9.1% during the third quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 58,843 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $13,877,000 after purchasing an additional 4,898 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 10.3% during the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 106,746 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,131,000 after purchasing an additional 9,974 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $253.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 28th. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $297.00 price objective (up from $285.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $240.00 target price on shares of Lincoln Electric and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $302.83.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $254.70 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The stock has a market cap of $13.96 billion, a PE ratio of 27.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.24. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $272.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $250.34. 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 announced its 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. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.30% and a return on equity of 39.35%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.57 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

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

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.