Beacon Financial Advisory LLC Has $2.45 Million Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Key Points

• Beacon Financial Advisory LLC increased its stake in Lincoln Electric by 430.0% during the 2nd quarter, resulting in an ownership of 11,834 shares worth approximately $2.45 million.
• Lincoln Electric reported earnings of $2.60 EPS for the last quarter, exceeding estimates by $0.28, and revenue rose by 6.6% year-over-year to $1.09 billion.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.75 per share, with an ex-dividend date set for September 30th, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 1.3%.

Beacon Financial Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) by 430.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,834 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 9,601 shares during the quarter. Lincoln Electric accounts for about 0.6% of Beacon Financial Advisory LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Beacon Financial Advisory LLC's holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $2,454,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of LECO. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Lincoln Electric by 19.3% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,178 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $408,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in Lincoln Electric by 36.1% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 600 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $113,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Curat Global LLC acquired a new stake in Lincoln Electric in the 1st quarter worth about $110,000. Congress Asset Management Co. raised its stake in Lincoln Electric by 22.6% in the 1st quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 72,050 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $13,629,000 after purchasing an additional 13,279 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV raised its stake in Lincoln Electric by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 25,556 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,834,000 after purchasing an additional 722 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Stock Up 2.0%

NASDAQ:LECO opened at $236.39 on Friday. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $239.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $211.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.68 and a quick ratio of 1.08. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $161.11 and a one year high of $249.19. The company has a market cap of $13.05 billion, a PE ratio of 26.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.20.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.28. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.27% and a return on equity of 39.79%. The business had revenue of $1.09 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.04 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.34 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Lincoln Electric's payout ratio is 33.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Steven B. Hedlund sold 12,387 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.36, for a total value of $3,014,500.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 55,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,595,549.76. The trade was a 18.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $233.23, for a total transaction of $233,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 9,177 shares in the company, valued at $2,140,351.71. This trade represents a 9.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 23,692 shares of company stock worth $5,745,148 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.63% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on LECO shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. Roth Capital assumed coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Friday, September 5th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $279.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lincoln Electric from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $239.33.

About Lincoln Electric

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.

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