Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO Stock Position Reduced by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Key Points

• Bank of New York Mellon trimmed its Lincoln Electric stake by 3.0% in Q1, but still held 445,961 shares worth about $111.1 million at the end of the period.
• Insider selling continued, with EVP Michael J. Whitehead selling 845 shares for roughly $232,214, reducing his direct ownership by 8.31%.
• Lincoln Electric recently beat earnings and revenue estimates for the quarter, posting $2.50 EPS on $1.12 billion in revenue, while analysts currently rate the stock a Hold with a consensus target price of $299.38.

Bank of New York Mellon Corp decreased its position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) by 3.0% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 445,961 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 14,028 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned 0.81% of Lincoln Electric worth $111,080,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in LECO. Hilltop Holdings Inc. increased its stake in Lincoln Electric by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 1,832 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 4,361 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,045,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 4,314 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,034,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Lincoln Electric by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,241 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $318,000 after buying an additional 55 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versor Investments LP boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Versor Investments LP now owns 1,563 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $375,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. 79.61% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Lincoln Electric

In related news, EVP Michael J. Whitehead sold 845 shares of Lincoln Electric stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.81, for a total transaction of $232,214.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,319 shares in the company, valued at $2,560,954.39. The trade was a 8.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.68% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lincoln Electric from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and set a $280.00 price objective (down from $350.00) on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $275.00 price objective on Lincoln Electric in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen lowered Lincoln Electric from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Lincoln Electric from $250.00 to $253.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $299.38.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

LECO opened at $245.44 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. The business's 50 day moving average is $261.10 and its 200-day moving average is $263.27. The stock has a market cap of $13.45 billion, a PE ratio of 25.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.20. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $216.22 and a twelve month high of $310.00.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.42 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $1.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 12.38%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.16 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 10.84 earnings per share for the current year.

About Lincoln Electric

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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