Bessemer Group Inc. Reduces Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO)

Bessemer Group Inc. trimmed its position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) by 64.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,989 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 10,639 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $1,133,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 806 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $151,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 555,836 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $104,203,000 after acquiring an additional 13,134 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter worth about $5,623,000. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 505,701 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $94,804,000 after purchasing an additional 23,327 shares during the period. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its stake in shares of Lincoln Electric by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 5,262 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $986,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lincoln Electric Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of LECO stock traded up $2.27 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $216.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 257,398 shares, compared to its average volume of 320,680. The stock has a market cap of $12.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.65, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 1.19 and a current ratio of 1.78. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $161.11 and a 52-week high of $222.52. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $196.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $193.55.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.16 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.22 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $365.45 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $974.39 million. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.44% and a net margin of 11.44%. Lincoln Electric's quarterly revenue was up 2.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.23 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.39%. Lincoln Electric's payout ratio is 36.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on LECO. KeyCorp dropped their price target on Lincoln Electric from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lincoln Electric from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, June 27th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on Lincoln Electric from $242.00 to $212.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Lincoln Electric from $179.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $178.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $206.40.

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.