The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Makes New $1.86 Million Investment in Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. $LECO

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new stake in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 52,570 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,858,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned about 0.10% of Lincoln Electric at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $1,431,181,000. Diamant Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 24,685.8% in the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,839,568 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $956,360,000 after purchasing an additional 3,824,077 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric in the fourth quarter worth approximately $415,155,000. Algebris UK Ltd. purchased a new stake in Lincoln Electric during the second quarter valued at about $44,811,000. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the second quarter worth approximately $21,914,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.61% of the company's stock.

Lincoln Electric Stock Up 1.0%

Shares of LECO stock traded up $2.60 during trading on Monday, reaching $259.80. The company's stock had a trading volume of 124,872 shares, compared to its average volume of 387,812. The company has a market capitalization of $14.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.21. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $216.22 and a 1-year high of $310.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $268.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $263.38.

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.81 by $0.12. Lincoln Electric had a return on equity of 39.23% and a net margin of 12.35%.The business had revenue of $1.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.60 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. will post 11.16 EPS for the current year.

Lincoln Electric Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 30th will be issued a $0.79 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 30th. This represents a $3.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. Lincoln Electric's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 31.57%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LECO has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lincoln Electric from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $257.00 to $283.00 in a report on Monday, August 10th. DA Davidson started coverage on Lincoln Electric in a report on Tuesday, June 16th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $320.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Lincoln Electric in a report on Monday, August 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $340.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lincoln Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Lincoln Electric from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One 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's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $307.22.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc NASDAQ: LECO is a Cleveland, Ohio-based manufacturer of welding, cutting and automation products. Founded in 1895 by John C. Lincoln, the company serves industrial, construction, energy, transportation and other end markets that use fabrication and joining technologies.

Its product portfolio includes arc-welding machines, welding consumables such as electrodes and wire, plasma and oxyfuel cutting equipment, robotic welding systems, and related automation solutions.