Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Has $9.94 Million Position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio cut its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) by 7.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 39,923 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 3,349 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio owned approximately 0.07% of Lincoln Electric worth $9,944,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 2,477 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $468,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 553.4% during the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,137 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $215,000 after buying an additional 963 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 8.9% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 362,561 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $68,582,000 after buying an additional 29,505 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 8.7% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 137,540 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,017,000 after buying an additional 10,961 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 980.8% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 281 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $53,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock opened at $256.85 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.83 and a quick ratio of 1.15. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $259.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $263.52. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $216.22 and a fifty-two week high of $310.00. The firm has a market cap of $14.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.20.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.42 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $1.12 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 12.38%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.16 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 10.85 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.79 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Lincoln Electric’s payout ratio is presently 32.61%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total transaction of $232,214.45. Following the transaction, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 1.68% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LECO has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson initiated coverage on Lincoln Electric in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $320.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $250.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 target price on Lincoln Electric in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $280.00 target price (down from $350.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $299.38.

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.