The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Buys Shares of 39,658 Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

Key Points

• The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired 39,658 Lincoln Electric shares valued at approximately $10.5 million, while several other institutional investors also initiated or increased positions. Institutional investors now own 79.61% of the company.
• Analyst sentiment is favorable, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $307.22. Recent upgrades included UBS initiating coverage with a $340 buy target and Morgan Stanley raising its rating to equal weight.
• Lincoln Electric exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $2.93 in EPS and $1.22 billion in revenue, up 12% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.79, representing a $3.16 annualized payout and a 1.1% yield.

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 39,658 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $10,530,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned approximately 0.07% of Lincoln Electric at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sone Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the second quarter valued at about $13,858,000. Veratis Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the second quarter valued at approximately $8,709,000. Wood Tarver Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Lincoln Electric during the second quarter worth about $238,000. Fiduciary Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Algert Global LLC grew its stake in Lincoln Electric by 466.9% in the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 147,509 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,214,000 after purchasing an additional 121,490 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LECO shares. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a research report on Monday, August 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $340.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley raised Lincoln Electric from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and increased their target price for the company from $257.00 to $283.00 in a research note on Monday, August 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Lincoln Electric from $280.00 to $300.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LECO opened at $284.89 on Friday. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $216.22 and a 1 year high of $310.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.20. The company's 50-day moving average is $267.37 and its 200 day moving average is $266.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.20.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.81 by $0.12. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.23% and a net margin of 12.35%.The company had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.60 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be paid a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Lincoln Electric's dividend payout ratio is presently 31.57%.

Insider Activity at Lincoln Electric

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

Lincoln Electric Profile

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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