Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) Stock Has Average Target Price of $319.11 According to Brokerages

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the ten ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $319.11.

Several brokerages recently commented on LECO. Weiss Ratings downgraded Lincoln Electric from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on Lincoln Electric from $317.00 to $322.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $300.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 29th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $340.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, DA Davidson set a $340.00 price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Thursday, October 29th.

Lincoln Electric Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ LECO opened at $275.35 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $267.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $266.48. 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 has a 12-month low of $216.22 and a 12-month high of $310.00. The company has a market cap of $14.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.40, a P/E/G ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.19.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 27th. The industrial products company reported $2.98 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.17. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 40.06% and a net margin of 12.40%. The company had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.47 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Lincoln Electric will post 11.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 31st. This is a positive change from Lincoln Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.79. Lincoln Electric’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lincoln Electric news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 14,371 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 63,483 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,899,031.85. This represents a 18.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 1.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Lincoln Electric

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. BlackRock Inc. boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 40.5% in the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 18,561,962 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $656,165,000 after purchasing an additional 5,354,141 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $52,700,000. Algebris UK Ltd. purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,811,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,148,000. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 693,090 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $183,383,000 after purchasing an additional 34,050 shares in the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Lincoln Electric

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.

Lincoln Electric is headquartered in the Cleveland, Ohio, area.