Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO Shares Sold by State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D has reduced its stake in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. by 11.2% during the first quarter, holding 17,602 shares worth approximately $3.33 million.
• Lincoln Electric reported a $2.60 EPS for its quarterly earnings, exceeding analyst expectations, with revenue reaching $1.09 billion, a 6.6% increase from the previous year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.75 per share, with a payout ratio of 33.71%, demonstrating solid return to shareholders amid institutional interest.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lowered its holdings in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) by 11.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,602 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,225 shares during the period. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Lincoln Electric were worth $3,330,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter valued at $68,000. Signaturefd LLC boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 77.1% in the first quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 425 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $80,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 12.2% in the first 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 last quarter. Curat Global LLC acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric in the first quarter valued at $110,000. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 36.1% in the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 600 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $113,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Stock Up 3.0%

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock traded up $7.13 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $245.25. 187,679 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 354,232. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $224.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $203.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The company has a market cap of $13.54 billion, a PE ratio of 27.56, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.21. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $161.11 and a twelve month high of $246.83.

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

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Lincoln Electric's payout ratio is 33.71%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Gabriel Bruno sold 7,305 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $242.42, for a total transaction of $1,770,878.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 29,927 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,254,903.34. This trade represents a 19.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jennifer I. Ansberry sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $242.18, for a total transaction of $726,540.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 19,173 shares in the company, valued at $4,643,317.14. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.63% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LECO has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Lincoln Electric from $179.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Lincoln Electric from $236.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Lincoln Electric from $250.00 to $280.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Wall Street Zen raised Lincoln Electric from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $231.40.

Lincoln Electric Company 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.