129,496 Shares in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO Purchased by Bank of America Corp DE

Key Points

• Bank of America purchased 129,496 shares of Lincoln Electric in the second quarter, valued at approximately $34.4 million and representing a 0.24% stake. Institutional investors collectively own 79.61% of the company.
• Lincoln Electric exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting EPS of $2.93 versus the $2.81 consensus and revenue of $1.22 billion, up 12% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.79, equivalent to an annualized $3.16 payout and a 1.2% yield. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $307.22.

Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 129,496 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $34,382,000. Bank of America Corp DE owned 0.24% of Lincoln Electric as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in LECO. Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter valued at $2,767,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter worth $26,148,000. Man Group plc purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter worth about $2,681,000. Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter valued at about $319,000. Finally, Invst LLC bought a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,253,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LECO opened at $262.99 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $268.82 and a 200 day moving average of $263.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74. The stock has a market cap of $14.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.21. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $216.22 and a 12 month high of $310.00.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.17 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.23%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.60 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Lincoln Electric's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LECO. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Lincoln Electric from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lincoln Electric from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, August 10th. DA Davidson began coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Tuesday, June 16th. They set a "buy" rating and a $320.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Monday, August 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $340.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Profile

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.

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