Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO Shares Purchased by Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 23.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,885 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,503 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $6,023,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Lincoln Electric by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,850,816 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $436,478,000 after purchasing an additional 72,826 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric during the second quarter valued at approximately $354,063,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 31.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 919,926 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $216,946,000 after buying an additional 221,853 shares during the period. Boston Partners grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 24.6% during the third quarter. Boston Partners now owns 850,201 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $200,517,000 after buying an additional 167,773 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 21.8% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 726,949 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $171,167,000 after acquiring an additional 130,332 shares in the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LECO has been the topic of a number of research reports. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $340.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays increased their price target on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley set a $240.00 price objective on Lincoln Electric and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 target price on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $302.83.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

NASDAQ LECO opened at $248.00 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 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 12 month low of $161.11 and a 12 month high of $310.00. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $272.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $250.56.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 previous year, the firm earned $2.57 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a $0.79 dividend. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. Lincoln Electric’s payout ratio is currently 33.91%.

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.