Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) has been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the eight brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, two have issued a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $302.8333.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on LECO shares. Barclays raised their target price 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 reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $297.00 target price (up from $285.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $253.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of LECO. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 72.2% during the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,156 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $517,000 after purchasing an additional 904 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors raised its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 3,748 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $898,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 252.1% during the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 8,293 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,988,000 after buying an additional 5,938 shares during the period. Midway Capital Research & Management bought a new position in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,468,000. Finally, Tempo Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $988,000. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock opened at $249.72 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $272.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $250.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 1.16 and a current ratio of 1.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.79, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.24. Lincoln Electric has a 52 week low of $161.11 and a 52 week high of $310.00.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The industrial products company reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.09 billion. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.35% and a net margin of 12.30%.The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.57 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric will post 9.36 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. 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.