Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,399,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 104,669 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 9.81% of Lincoln Electric worth $1,273,415,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quent Capital LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric in the third quarter valued at $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 3,700.0% in the 3rd quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 114 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 82.4% in the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 155 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 3,860.0% during the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 198 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 193 shares during the period. 79.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LECO. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Robert W. Baird set a $330.00 target price on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Zacks Research cut shares of Lincoln Electric from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley set a $240.00 price target on Lincoln Electric and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report 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, Lincoln Electric currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $302.83.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

NASDAQ:LECO opened at $286.13 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $262.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $246.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.82 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market cap of $15.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.70, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.26. 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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.12. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.35% and a net margin of 12.30%.The business had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.79 per share. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 31st. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio 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.