Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) Rating Increased to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Sunday.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “underweight” rating and issued a $250.00 target price on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Monday, May 4th. DA Davidson assumed coverage on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $320.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 price target on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $280.00 target price (down from $350.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $299.00.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

NASDAQ LECO traded up $4.62 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $250.97. The company had a trading volume of 212,634 shares, compared to its average volume of 375,062. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.90, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.20. Lincoln Electric has a 52 week low of $214.06 and a 52 week high of $310.00. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $263.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $262.83.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.42 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 12.38%.The company’s revenue was up 11.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.16 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Lincoln Electric will post 10.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Lincoln Electric news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total value of $232,214.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 9,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,560,954.39. This represents a 8.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 1.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LECO. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter worth $46,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 980.8% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 281 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter valued at about $64,000. Finally, United Community Bank bought a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.