Zacks Research Issues Optimistic Outlook for LECO Earnings

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) - Investment analysts at Zacks Research upped their Q3 2027 EPS estimates for Lincoln Electric in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, September 2nd. Zacks Research analyst Team now expects that the industrial products company will earn $3.02 per share for the quarter, up from their prior forecast of $2.97. The consensus estimate for Lincoln Electric's current full-year earnings is $11.16 per share.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a "buy" rating and a $320.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lincoln Electric from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Monday, August 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $340.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Trading Up 0.9%

Lincoln Electric stock traded up $2.38 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $259.58. 124,872 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 387,812. Lincoln Electric has a fifty-two week low of $216.22 and a fifty-two week high of $310.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $14.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.93, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.21. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $268.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $263.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.12. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.23%. The firm had revenue of $1.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.60 earnings per share. Lincoln Electric's revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. 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 31.57%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lincoln Electric

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LECO. BlackRock Inc. increased its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 40.5% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 18,561,962 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $656,165,000 after acquiring an additional 5,354,141 shares during the period. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at $1,677,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at $415,155,000. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 23.2% in the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 64,257 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $16,005,000 after purchasing an additional 12,093 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,306,641 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $313,175,000 after purchasing an additional 6,070 shares during the period. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lincoln Electric

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc NASDAQ: LECO is a Cleveland, Ohio-based manufacturer of welding, cutting and automation products. Founded in 1895 by John C. Lincoln, the company serves industrial, construction, energy, transportation and other end markets that use fabrication and joining technologies.

Its product portfolio includes arc-welding machines, welding consumables such as electrodes and wire, plasma and oxyfuel cutting equipment, robotic welding systems, and related automation solutions.