Ieq Capital LLC Acquires New Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Key Points

• Ieq Capital acquired 67,445 shares of Lincoln Electric worth approximately $17.9 million, joining other institutional investors that collectively own 79.61% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $307.22; UBS initiated coverage with a $340 target and a Buy rating.
• Lincoln Electric exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.93 in EPS and $1.22 billion in revenue, while declaring a quarterly dividend of $0.79 per share, equivalent to a 1.1% annual yield.

Ieq Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 67,445 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $17,907,000. Ieq Capital LLC owned approximately 0.12% of Lincoln Electric at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter valued at about $656,165,000. Diamant Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 24,685.8% during the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,839,568 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $956,360,000 after purchasing an additional 3,824,077 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $415,155,000. Algebris UK Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the second quarter valued at approximately $44,811,000. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the second quarter valued at approximately $21,914,000. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on LECO. UBS Group started 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 on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lincoln Electric from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research report on Monday, August 10th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 price objective on Lincoln Electric in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Lincoln Electric from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock opened at $281.82 on Friday. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $216.22 and a one year high of $310.00. The company has a market cap of $15.36 billion, a PE ratio of 28.15, a P/E/G ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a current ratio of 1.98. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $266.06 and a 200-day simple moving average of $265.97.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. Lincoln Electric had a net margin of 12.35% and a return on equity of 39.23%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.60 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be given a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Lincoln Electric's dividend payout ratio is currently 31.57%.

Insider Activity at Lincoln Electric

In other news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total value of $232,214.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,319 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,560,954.39. This trade represents a 8.31% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.68% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc NASDAQ: LECO is a global manufacturer and distributor of welding products, robotic welding systems, plasma and oxyfuel cutting equipment, and surface treatment systems. The company's portfolio encompasses welding consumables such as electrodes and wires, as well as power sources, torches, and automated welding cells. Lincoln Electric also offers software solutions and training services designed to optimize productivity and quality in fabrication and manufacturing operations.

Founded in 1895 by John C.

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