Moran Wealth Management LLC Sells 10,058 Shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO)

Moran Wealth Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) by 76.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,090 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 10,058 shares during the period. Moran Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $585,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in LECO. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $307,344,000. Champlain Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $110,062,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $92,117,000. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lifted its position in Lincoln Electric by 15,932.5% during the fourth quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 336,682 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $63,118,000 after purchasing an additional 334,582 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in Lincoln Electric by 22,146.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 291,874 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $55,211,000 after purchasing an additional 290,562 shares during the last quarter. 79.61% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Lincoln Electric Stock Performance

LECO traded down $2.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $209.27. 1,389,876 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 323,187. The company has a quick ratio of 1.19, a current ratio of 1.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.68 billion, a PE ratio of 25.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.52 and a beta of 1.20. The company's 50-day moving average is $193.60 and its 200 day moving average is $193.47. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $161.11 and a 52 week high of $222.52.

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

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.75 per share. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. Lincoln Electric's dividend payout ratio is currently 36.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. KeyCorp dropped their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $245.00 to $225.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price 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. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $179.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $242.00 to $212.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lincoln Electric currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" 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.