Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Takes Position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. purchased 6,611 shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. valued at approximately $1.25 million in the first quarter.
• Lincoln Electric recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.75, representing a 1.2% annual yield, and its payout ratio is currently at 33.71%.
• Wall Street analysts' ratings for Lincoln Electric vary, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $231.40, reflecting differing opinions on the stock's future performance.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 6,611 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,251,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter valued at about $68,000. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 77.1% during the 1st quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 425 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 517 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $97,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 12.2% during the 1st quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 553 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $105,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Curat Global LLC bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the first quarter worth about $110,000. Institutional investors own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LECO traded down $1.47 on Friday, hitting $239.84. The company's stock had a trading volume of 111,814 shares, compared to its average volume of 351,475. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $215.29 and a 200-day moving average of $200.17. The company has a market capitalization of $13.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.21. 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 12-month low of $161.11 and a 12-month high of $246.83.

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

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be given a dividend of $0.75 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Lincoln Electric's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $179.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. 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 research report on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen upgraded Lincoln Electric from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on Lincoln Electric from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $231.40.

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.