Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) Stock Has Average Price Target of $307.22 According to Brokerages

Shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $307.22.

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lincoln Electric from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, October 10th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Monday, August 10th. They set a “buy” rating and a $340.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Lincoln Electric from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, August 10th.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock opened at $260.24 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $271.22 and a 200 day moving average of $263.96. Lincoln Electric has a 52 week low of $216.22 and a 52 week high of $310.00. The company has a market cap of $14.18 billion, a PE ratio of 26.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.21. 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, equities research analysts forecast that Lincoln Electric will post 11.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 31st will be paid a $0.87 dividend. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 31st. This is an increase from Lincoln Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.57%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LECO. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 5.1% during the third quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 859 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $227,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,177 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 9.4% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 606 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $151,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Lincoln Electric by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,241 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $318,000 after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its position in Lincoln Electric by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 3,999 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,034,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company’s stock.

About Lincoln Electric

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc is a Cleveland, Ohio-based manufacturer of welding, cutting and industrial automation products. The company serves manufacturers, fabricators, construction companies, maintenance and repair operations, utilities, and other industrial customers.

Its product portfolio includes arc-welding equipment, welding consumables such as electrodes and welding wire, plasma-cutting systems, welding accessories, and related safety products. Lincoln Electric also provides automated and robotic welding systems, engineered solutions, training, and technical support.