UBS Group Upgrades Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) to Strong-Buy

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) was upgraded by UBS Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on LECO. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 price target on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Weiss Ratings raised Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $257.00 to $283.00 in a report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of LECO stock opened at $286.97 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.67, a PEG ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.20. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $262.94 and a 200 day moving average of $264.92. Lincoln Electric has a 52 week low of $216.22 and a 52 week high of $310.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.12. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.23%. The business had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.60 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Lincoln Electric will post 11.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of Lincoln Electric stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total transaction of $232,214.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,560,954.39. This trade represents a 8.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.68% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $656,165,000. Diamant Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 24,685.8% in the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,839,568 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $956,360,000 after acquiring an additional 3,824,077 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter worth $415,155,000. Algebris UK Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the second quarter worth $44,811,000. Finally, M&T Bank Corp increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 5,862.4% during the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 1,271,364 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $304,670,000 after acquiring an additional 1,250,041 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

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.