Assetmark Inc. Raises Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Assetmark Inc. grew its position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 20.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 11,845 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,005 shares during the quarter. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $2,793,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Lincoln Electric by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $240,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 2.8% in the third quarter. Kera Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,692 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $399,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Profund Advisors LLC raised its stake in Lincoln Electric by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Profund Advisors LLC now owns 1,264 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $298,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Advisors Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,752 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $363,000 after purchasing an additional 47 shares in the last quarter. Finally, YANKCOM Partnership lifted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $125,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares in the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LECO has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of Lincoln Electric from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $240.00 target price on shares of Lincoln Electric and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. 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 report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $302.83.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $289.04 on Thursday. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $161.11 and a 52 week high of $310.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.01, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.26. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $260.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $245.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.09 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.57 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Lincoln Electric

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.