Nomura Holdings Inc. Acquires New Stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO)

Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 7,487 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,404,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mizuho Bank Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 255.1% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 174 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 54.1% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 299 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 389 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Finally, Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Lincoln Electric in the 4th quarter valued at about $76,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

NASDAQ LECO traded down $2.74 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $191.67. The company had a trading volume of 76,449 shares, compared to its average volume of 333,701. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $161.11 and a twelve month high of $222.52. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $186.03 and a 200-day moving average price of $195.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The company has a market capitalization of $10.70 billion, a PE ratio of 23.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.18.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.22 by ($0.06). Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 40.19% and a net margin of 11.63%. The business had revenue of $365.45 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $974.39 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.23 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lincoln Electric Announces Dividend

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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 30th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.57%. Lincoln Electric's payout ratio is presently 36.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on LECO shares. Wall Street Zen raised Lincoln Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Barclays upped their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Lincoln Electric from $242.00 to $212.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. KeyCorp reduced 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Lincoln Electric from $179.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lincoln Electric has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $216.17.

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.