Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO Stock Sold by Keybank National Association OH

Keybank National Association OH lessened its position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 518,602 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 13,406 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH’s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $137,212,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LECO. BlackRock Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 40.5% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 18,561,962 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $656,165,000 after buying an additional 5,354,141 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,858,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 126.9% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 17,021 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,500,000 after acquiring an additional 9,518 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in Lincoln Electric by 403.4% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 21,388 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,679,000 after acquiring an additional 17,139 shares during the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in Lincoln Electric by 23.2% during the 1st quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 64,257 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $16,005,000 after acquiring an additional 12,093 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $284.42 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $216.22 and a 1-year high of $310.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.67 and a beta of 1.19. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $267.47 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $266.72.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The industrial products company reported $2.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.17. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 40.06%. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 31st will be issued a $0.87 dividend. This is an increase from Lincoln Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 31st. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Lincoln Electric from $283.00 to $293.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $271.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $317.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Lincoln Electric from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 31st. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $319.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lincoln Electric news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 14,371 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $281.95, for a total value of $4,051,903.45. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 63,483 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,899,031.85. This trade represents a 18.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 1.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. is a manufacturer of welding, cutting and automation products. Its offerings include arc-welding equipment and consumables, plasma and oxyfuel cutting systems, robotic welding solutions and related automation technologies, as well as brazing and soldering products. Founded in 1895 by John C. Lincoln, the company serves customers across a range of industries, including manufacturing, infrastructure, energy and transportation. Its products and services are sold in markets around the world through its international operations and distribution network.