Dark Forest Capital Management LP Buys New Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO)

Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,426 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $267,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 255.1% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 174 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its position in Lincoln Electric by 54.1% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 299 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 389 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $73,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter worth about $76,000. 79.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock traded up $1.44 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $177.64. 536,366 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 329,847. The business has a fifty day moving average of $187.78 and a two-hundred day moving average of $196.10. The company has a market capitalization of $9.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $161.11 and a 1 year high of $238.47.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.22 by ($0.06). Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 40.19% and a net margin of 11.63%. The business had revenue of $365.45 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $974.39 million. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.23 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.69%. Lincoln Electric's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on LECO. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $178.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Lincoln Electric from $187.00 to $179.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $216.00.

Insider Activity at Lincoln Electric

In other news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 21,054 shares of Lincoln Electric stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $215.47, for a total transaction of $4,536,505.38. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 54,660 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,777,590.20. The trade was a 27.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 2.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Lincoln Electric Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells welding, cutting, and brazing products worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Americas Welding, International Welding, and The Harris Products Group. It offers brazing and soldering filler metals, arc welding equipment, plasma and oxyfuel cutting systems, wire feeding systems, fume control equipment, welding accessories, and specialty gas regulators, and education solutions, as well as a portfolio of automated solutions for joining, cutting, material handling, module assembly, and end of line testing, as well as involved in brazing and soldering alloys, and in the retail business in the United States.